vampire the requiem 2nd edition

Covenants rise and fall, occasionally. They have done so lay in the loosely-formed group who would eventually be called
ever since the Camarilla, first and arguably the greatest of all the Gallows Post, the creatures who feasted on the lifeblood
covenants, fell some 16 centuries ago. Of the Camarilla itself of lonely travelers. For a price, they arranged safe passage
little more needs to be said. It survives in the Invictus and in for the other dead, and maintained secret hiding places far
the Lancea et Sanctum that destroyed it. from civilization where the Kindred could spend the day. The
Gallows Post ensured the lines of communication that made
A few covenants survived for longer than a few centuries. the existence of the vampire covenants possible.
They are gone now, for all intents and purposes, but traces of
them survive. The horrors they left behind might still have As the world of the living became relatively more open, routes
significance for the curious or unlucky neonate, even now. became easier to travel, and borders became less inchoate and
Some covenants exist as rumors; and while hard evidence of more effectively guarded, the world of the Kindred closed down;
their having existed is relatively easy to find, do they exist now? and it became harder for the dead to travel. Having reached a
peak in the 16th century, the Gallows Post dwindled, slowly. The
Wait for them to find you, and perhaps you may find out. last vampire of the Gallows Post met his Final Death in 1892.

The Legion of the Dead Still, to one who knows the signs and the ancient forms, secret
The Legion of the Dead originated in the Camarilla. That wilderness places still remain where the Gallows Post allowed the
vampire government dissolved, and most of its military wing dead to wait on their travels. But who knows what else waits there?
joined the Lancea et Sanctum and later the Invictus. But the
Legion, the Grim Battalion, continued to exist as a separate The Children’s Crusade
body. It was a very different beast, a bloody-handed mercenary The Kindred — those with some smidgen of human
band of blood-drinking thugs, assassins, and murderers who conscience remaining — shy from embracing the truly
thrived in the turmoil of the Dark Ages. By the 9th century, the innocent. It wasn’t always the case. For about five hundred
Grim Battalion’s creed had devolved to “profit or die.” years, between the 12th century and the 18th, the Embrace
of children was the sole preserve of the Children’s Crusade;
Working for the highest bidder carries its own risks; after and conversely, if children were Embraced, the First and
too many betrayals, too many turns, too many bribes taken, Second Estates in many domains dictated that they were
the trust they had earned was gone. The Legion of the Dead, put into the Crusade’s care.
one by one, found themselves eliminated. By the 12th Century,
all were gone. A child who becomes a monster is a truly terribly thing,
denied the right to grow up, and quite possibly lacking the
Even now, one can still find pieces of their legacy in museums: maturity to deal with the physical and spiritual horrors of
a thousand-year-old sword, miraculously preserved but carrying the vampiric condition. These dead children took care of
a reputed curse; a rusty suit of armor hidden in a vault, haunted their own, hunting their brothers and sisters who had fallen
by the terrifying, enraged victims of its wearer; hoards of cursed into madness with a terrible sing-song glee. But after a time it
coins, left by the greed-fuelled soldiers of the Grim Battalion, became apparent to the Invictus and the Lancea et Sanctum
waiting to be found, and to unleash their horrors upon the of a hundred cities that the Children’s Crusade was corrupt
dead who still lust after blood, glory, and wealth. in ways that the adult monsters could not fully understand.
The Crusade hid the crimes of the maddened dead children
The Gallows Post who filled its ranks. The children made deals with owls.
In some ways, the late Middle Ages were a golden period for
the dead. Plagues and wars swept across Europe and North Hunts took place. Terrible things were done. The
Africa. People hid in the dark, in their communities, hardly Children’s Crusade is gone — outside of a few fog-addled
traveling at all. The routes and wildernesses of Europe became recollections of the older Kindred, a handful of letters, a
dangerous places; stories of the terrible things that haunted the single book published by subscription in the 19th century.
lonely pathways of the North were common currency. The truth But some are not gone forever. Some, only a few, still sleep,
in hidden, lonely places: lost attics, sewers, caves. And if

50 Vampire: the Requiem

these creatures awaken, these terrible, tragic devil-children developed a system of blood magic to consort with angels
could once again try, one by one, to rebuild their traditions and devils. They drank the blood of angels. They sought to
and begin the Children’s Crusade once more. murder God. One story told to a neonate by Ephraim Tench,
the Beast of Uttoxeter, describes how a vampire Embraced an
The Tenth Choir angel. Or became a blood-drinking angel (Ephraim’s memory
If the Tenth Choir existed at all beyond whispered legends, isn’t what it was). Was this symbolic? Did the Tenth Choir’s
word-of-mouth stories denied by some of the Sanctified with members deal in metaphor? Did the Tenth Choir exist at all?
almost excessive force, little evidence remains.
The last anyone heard of the Tenth Choir was in the London Blitz.
Elisabeta the Plague Nun sometimes tells the story of a
fraternity of vampires who believed that since their living, If a diary or a grimoire were to surface containing the ideas
hungry death was a curse of God, they must take revenge on and achievements of these blasphemous dead men, what
the divine. Between the 17th and 20th centuries, the Choir would it be worth? Who — or what — would stop at nothing
to retrieve it?

Does the Tenth Choir yet exist?

Chapter One: Who We Are Tonight 51

PART II

Edie

Jackrabbit and Jefe and Katy Cruel and me, all standing around our
heart’s desire, and you could have plucked the air like a guitar string.

cwhwheWharesoeeergawhfonuaaidndlslngyt’ghttaoeosqirnseuwgu,itamwteyoelhamdpoyaitcdwthkheeaerusitepegstwothchaiionssegrtfbotaaoncrglayciran,rngaoodwcuinhkrrugotnpthwole(atanbhvssaea,ntgtyohoowipneuogeounstnleodleeik..pbeeWeaemnle aeek)gn.ggeuWswaheredwljlu,haswoatnady

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52 Monday

the moonlight. Jefe and Katy were busy escorting the van’s honor guard
into the desert. So when someone hopped out of the back of the van,
silent as you please and reeking of someone else’s blood, I was the
closest available party to train his piece on. At which point shit got a

bit out of hand.

mpoOoIinWatpiusnghheihretdneasterpcn.,wtpoeshWweiihvtsenehehaeervlreildace,orwnhrntaoaodeansaifinntdsdaahpudtwrereessyerdpfetupheottoalahyflniiydfnewusfbIweseoaellhmemelhwmneiaeblneeidolearonnxrheatwepens’gesonycocs,fehsitmnsnihosngootguat.rttrIeGotmtpherofefrseiai,sdeagm,deoauynDitrlcaahdyeanhndeddIoyer, t,Ienbkhbkoeebhirmnretooarpginktnaghehdayeit.abathtltoAioniaustnwsoyctdfoelwaiiiutmfc.erbell.

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way.

A van full of heroin was not on the itinerary. And the day was in danger
of staring back at us.

Katy made me bury the bodies, which I suppose was fair, and we ran.

Monday 53



There are only the pursued, the pursuing, the busy, and the tired.
F. Scott Fitzgerald, The Great Gatsby

How did you get here? of night we made the promise. She was a kid, and I was a kid, legs
hanging off the fire escape, dangling over forever.
Nobody’s from here.
“On the off chance that one of us becomes a vampire, we have
They all came with good intentions and lousy directions. to turn the other,” she said. “Promise?”
They all took a wrong turn at Ninth and Hennepin. There’s
a diner, way-way down, where THE END eats the road. ALL I promised. Silly. Random. But it had that Jupiter gravity that
NIGHT, sputters the neon. Inside are faces of souls long gone, things only have when you’re that young. A pinprick — and we
some familiar, but slightly off, like one of those paintings full exchanged blood-drop thumb prints pressed on index cards scribbled
of dead nostalgia archetypes — Marilyn and Elvis and Bogey. with biology test notes.

Inside, they all laugh and smile, because they know how to Restless, we felt the pull of impending mortalities. Just a taste
make the motion, the way liquid latex knows how to pour into a — we still knew we’d never grow old. The promise was a defiance
mold. Everyone drinks their dinner. They come here every night, to all that biology. We made out a little, eager and clumsy as June
after the sun cuts itself on the jagged-glass edge of the horizon, and bugs smashing into sodium-lit walls.
the sky is a red, gushy mess, and the hot air cools like bath water.
The waning day knows they are coming. The All Night Society. Time happened. Life spoils things. We lost touch. After that,
well, death can be a bitch too.
The old wives croon that the dead hide in their dark spaces,
because they are afraid of the sun. Maybe, just maybe, the dead Tonight, I found the index card lingering impossibly in the
are sporting sorts, and they give the daylight a head start. “You mausoleum of my life. I put my tongue to her thumbprint, and I
go hide, and I’ll count to dusk.” was there. A little social network ninjutsu, and I had an address.

Welcome. There’s a stool open. There always is. Now I’m skipping down the street. Nostalgia snow-globing my dead
head. Everything is potential. The audacity! To keep a silly, impossible
Needs Must promise, a cackling middle finger in the face of their stupid Danse and
If you have a thirsty man, a glass of water, and something the hungry-hungry sky.
between them, you have compelling drama. The need’s the thing.
I’m up the fire escape. I knock on her window.
The vampire is fascinating, not because of her alien nature,
but because all of her motivations are familiar. We know those She startles. I slip in. I say her name. She says mine, but with
needs. We know what it is to thirst. That darkness comes from a question mark. No explosion of pent-up contexts. I show her the
a place we all understand. We did this. card. “The promise!” I say. I can protect the promise, seal it in red
antioxidants and fuck what free radicals may come.
The Beast magnifies need. The vampire is a glorious vortex
of needs. She is never quenched, and so she is always a story. She drops the card. Confused. She doesn’t even remember. She
flinches away. I bite, catch her swooning, try to apologize. In the
There is you. There is the glass of water. In between, is light, I see crow’s feet clawing her eyes, bunched up shirt revealing
amphetamine bedlam. stretch marks. Where’s the girl? I bite again. Drink deep. It’s crazy,
stupid, but a voice says I eat life, so I can drink away all the
Be thirsty. years between the then and the now. I fathom her depths. Scrape
bottom. No girl.
All These Things That I’ve Become
Same kind of night. After dusk, but I can still feel the street heat I look up to my blurred face in the hall mirror. How long has it
and taste the bitters and sweets and September blues. Same kind been? It hurts, but I sharpen my thoughts, cut through the murk,
and my face clears. Receding hairline. Extra chin. When did that
happen? Where’d the gaunt, Byron boy go?

Now a kid’s crying in the next room.

Chapter: Two The All Night Society 55

My shadow laughs at me. Wendy’s down, and I’m no fucking Peter Pan. Kindred must have shelter — not a proper haven — we’re
not that high on the hierarchy yet. This is tearing through the
The Damned have a hierarchy of needs. It starts down low, streets, with moments to spare, survival. What would you do?
on your hands and knees, desperately tonguing scabbed lust out
of the grooves of the alley pavement — no concern for anyone • They ran Eddy out of the city. Nothing so terrifying as the barren
watching you ruining your Sunday best. prosperity of the burbs — everything new, nothing decrepit,
nothing abandoned. With the sun turning his skin to egg yolk
Vampires need blood and shelter the same way humans need on desert rock, Eddy crouched down to die, but the thing living
food and shelter and even love. inside him gave him the strength to sprint across the asphalt,
kill the man washing the ice-cream truck, and lock himself in
Blood the back freezer. Twinkling music now, three nights later. Hot
Everything comes back to this. Pick any door. It doesn’t enough that people are happy to buy frozen treats after dusk.
matter. In this funhouse nightmare, every hallway comes back Eddy doesn’t know where to go, is too afraid to leave his white
to the feeding room. coffin. He drives, people stop him, and he feels like that guy in
the story who takes the place of the genie in the bottle.
Like anyone else, vampires need food. They thirst for the blood
of the living. A vampire’s hunger is more urgent than a mortal’s. • “Alright, Laurie, I looked, and there is nothing under your bed,”
If he exhausts himself and fails to feed, he’ll slip into torpor, the Daddy said before closing the door. The night light flickers,
long sleep of the dead. and Laurie clutches her blanket. “Don’t let your arms or legs
hang off the sides, and you’ll be fine,” said the voice below.
The vampire is well adapted to feeding. When he is ready,
his fangs descend. Exposure to the traces of vampire blood in • Accepting that it was disgusting, bordering on embarrassing,
his mouth, as well as the bite itself, create a feeling of intense the sewers were not so bad. Victoria’s dress was a shambles, but
euphoria in the recipient. Vampires call this the Kiss. This is one day sleeping in the grunge would not kill her. She knew
love and lust for both parties. This is the sex you know you the stories of the things that scuttled down here were just tales
should not have, but will come back for. It’s transgressive, to frighten fledglings at Elysium, just another way to show
cutting through all the staid and sensible boundaries. Then dominion over the weak. There were phrases, painted on the
comes the peak, as blood courses through the vampire’s veins slimy walls, that made no sense to Victoria. She had never tuned
as if he were still alive. into the Cacophony. She dismissed the distant shuffling noises
as imagined, but that did not stop them from coming closer.
When finished drinking, the vampire merely licks the wound,
and it closes, much as he can force his own blood, or Vitae, to Moving Up
seal his wounds. And should a vampire eke out a little more than mere survival,
what then? A better flat? The Kindred are nocturnal predators,
The mortal luxuriates in a pleasant, sleepy afterglow. The corpse-demons styling in human skin. What do they need with
vampire’s body hums, once hollow, now full. He can do the comforts of home? Yet the urge to nest lingers. Four walls
anything! But afterglows fade faster than the embers of spent do more than hold out the sun; they hold something in. Smart
cigarettes. Both predator and prey shiver in the deep, knowing Kindred build themselves mausoleums in honor of the lives they
that there is a reason for the rules against the living fucking lost. Add a bit of hearth, decorate with a few things familiar, and
the dead. the ghost of the Man might haunt your halls a little while longer.

The Kiss leaves mortals with an unclear memory of what Among the Thorns
happened. Force and supernatural mesmerism rarely need come The Kindred are not so far above or below the kine as they
into it, but the ease of feeding does not absolve the vampire. There would like to believe. They play with their food. They take
are consequences. There is damage done, and harm to another in. They touch, and contaminate. Eventually, everything is a
harms the self. The Kiss passes something on. The victim’s mind part of everything.
weakens to the vampire’s will, becomes more vulnerable. It’s a
diluted drop of the Curse, but the contamination accumulates Context is king. The rose is not beautiful because of its red
over time, seeps into the people the vampire feeds upon and petals, but because it filters that beauty through the thorns
through them is reflected in his territory. This is pay-it-forward that you sometimes have to bleed for to enjoy.
damnation.
How do your relationships change when the heart stops
Shelter beating? Do you have breathing family? How did that tendon
The vampire is immortal, yet she lives on a countdown — twist? What of your neighbors? Awkward small talk in the
tick-tock. Every morning at dawn, she is compelled to sleep. If halls or elevators, when you’re pressed so close and the Beast
she resists that call, and exposes herself to the light, her skin whispers suggestions oh so delicately, and something in them
begins to smolder. A young vampire slowly blisters and burns.
An older one, far removed from the humans who laugh and
smile in the sunlight, may actually catch fire.

56 Vampire: the Requiem

knows it. What of the homeless you once overlooked — laying in intention. You came to kill him months ago, but couldn’t.
doorways like dropped groceries — how do you see them now? You’re living on nostalgia now, and you realize you’ll miss
him when he’s gone, while you have all the time in the world.
Contexts are not just people, but places, cultures, the view
of the cityscape from a particular balcony. The library. The The Contaminant Worm
pub. The sports stadium. The park. Do you still go to the “Ever notice how people and their pets start to resemble each
supermarket, with an empty cart, eyeing all the walking food? other?” says one teenager to the other. They share sips of stolen
The vampire exists in an ecosystem. It’s not balanced, and it’s schnapps and cold bites of post-October wind. They chat and
not nice, but everything is joined in a web. walk through the old cemetery, never noticing they are being
watched by a roosting creature who now resembles the angelic
You change the mortals, and they change you. They are statuary, the mantle of rain-worn wings, the chipped fingers
not just juice bags, and they are not just sheep. They form like claws. Crows perch on its head and shoulders.
the solid anchors and tearing barbs that keep the Man from
fleeing the Beast. This is important, because the Beast and the The dead change their territory and victims; in turn, their
Man are not necessarily enemies. The Beast protects the Man territory and victims change them. The blood goes in, and
from dangers and hunger and those who would tread on him. the blood goes out. It gets harder and harder to tell who is the
It’s a bad world, and sometimes it pays to have a big brother. nightmare of whom.

The Man makes the Beast a more sophisticated predator, he It gets in the blood. In the short term, the vampire inherits
gives it the tools of adaptability and creativity. But a vampire’s the buzz and high of alcoholics and addicts. In the long term?
humanity is an atrophying muscle. It must be flexed or it Well, given a little water, time can sculpt canyons.
will wither. Alienation must be countered or at least slowed.
Relationships with mortals have the power to do this. You need The ancient monster lairs in New York, blends with the
love, even if it’s only the whetstone that you sharpen your teeth on. people on whom she feeds, because the accents and culture
have seeped into her blood. Now it’s hard to see through all
You are only as alive as the company you keep. Who are that blood, to remember the Renaissance France she once knew
your touchstones ? so well. Time and blood eroded the stone.

• A tenuous partnership forms between you and the But the river flows both ways.
neighborhood watch lady. You see each other every night.
You bring her coffee, exchange small talk, and in the small The neighborhood haunted by the Gangrel gets wilder by
hours, you are the only two on Earth. She doesn’t even flinch degrees. Intimacies become primal. Arguments at the bar
at the way your eyes reflect her flashlight anymore. She had become physical. Everyone feels itches that their ancestors
a daughter, once, before the mugging that went bad on this knew how to scratch.
very block. She points out the furry form dashing across the
street. “The coyotes came into the city over the last decade, A Nosferatu dwells in a mall. There is a children’s restaurant —
but you hardly ever see them. Like ghosts. At first we were full of electronic games and fun — that has become inexplicably
afraid. What of our pets? Our kids? But now I look around, sinister. The adults dismiss it, ignore how grotesque the leering
and I see a lot fewer rats. You dig?” Yeah. You dig. faces of the animatronic band have become. Dismissal is easy,
and parents throw whole generations of screaming children
• You have become the pusher in a burnout burg, dealing Vitae to the clowns. The kids cannot ignore it, and the cheap pizza
and the Kiss, giving these breathing zombies an alternative grows soggy with tears.
to meth. You loathed them at first, those vacant eyes and
the gormless slack of their jaws, but they’re growing on Who am I to you?
you. Is this budding empathy, or are you just becoming a All the handholds of the tree are familiar. I don’t even have to
loser like them? knock on the second story window. It opens. He’s been waiting for
me. The first time, I had to force him. The second time I had to beg.
• The sports stadium is older than your sire. That’s I’m relieved I don’t have to do that anymore, but part of me hates him
comforting, the way you imagine the ocean or the stars must for not resisting.
comfort the elders. You make most of the night games. The
individuals of the roaring crowd change, but they are all “I need more,” I say.
the same entity, the same colony of coral. You breathe them
in and you cheer. You never feed here. You don’t want this “Ok…ok,” he says. “I can stay home sick tomorrow. I hate algebra
place contaminated, and you’ve put a broken baseball bat anyway.”
through more than one chest to keep it that way.
This part is always awkward. I take off my college letterman jacket,
• You live in the attic of the high school bully who tormented and we both sit on his bed, a body’s width apart. Silence. Then we lean
you once upon a time. He never sees you, but you spend long in clumsily, moving in the wrong directions — neck? wrist? somewhere
nights standing right next to him, feeling the heat of his else? — smiling politely like the people who keep cutting each other off,
body. You let the Beast play with his fear, the way a cat plays trying to pass in a cramped hall.
with yarn while daydreaming of murder. This was not your

Chapter: Two The All Night Society 57

Neck. Teeth. Then all awkwardness drains away. It’s so good.
He moans in my ear. I muffle a moan that vibrates his throat.
He breathes heavily. He holds on to me to keep from falling, and
I gently lay us down. I can feel him stiffening. A flailing hand
unintentionally clutches my breast, grasping and kneading, and
the nipple stiffens, and my body never reacts like that anymore,
except in this moment, and it’s so, so sweet. I drink, and we gently
grind against each other, because what else can you do to keep
from floating away? He gasps and shudders — a little death, just
a little death — and I press his face against my shoulder to keep
it quiet. I could drink down all of him, but I stop.

We’re lying parallel on the bed, both breathing. Both warm
and smiling and any troubles are a million light-years away. Then
the mood cools and congeals into something sticky. We both
startle and jump up, like we’ve just been caught in the bathroom.

I’ve got my jacket on.

“Also…” I say. “I need…”

He opens a wallet with Spider-Man on it, and hands me
his last ten spot. It breaks my heart, even more than the blood,
because what the hell else could I possibly take from him?

“This is the last time,” I say. It’s such a pretty lie. I jump
up on the windowsill, the air feels good and I need to get
outside. I don’t turn back. “Tell mom and dad I said hi.”

White Lies
Vampires talk frequently about the Masquerade,
the great deception that keeps the mob from
their doorsteps. For most vampires, though, the
Masquerade is not a global conspiracy. It’s the cloak
a vampire weaves, every night, to protect her from
the sun and the hunter’s fire.

Each thread is a lie. Learn to lie, and your body will
lie too — a heartbeat, a flush, warmth, and breath. Lies
that beget lies that beget lies. That is your existence
now. What does that do to you? If you do not learn
to lie well, people will die. Well…more than usual.

A vampire’s personal Masquerade is a series of
cons. How do you score blood? How do you stay
hidden when census takers come calling? Lies to
loved ones. Lies to strangers. Lies to food. You wish
you could have started practicing early, telling fibs
to steak dinners just to get the feel.

What of the people you knew in life? It takes so
many tiny lies to maintain that. “Sorry, had a massive
hangover and couldn’t make the morning meeting.”
“I’m photosensitive.” “I’m swamped, can’t come home
for Christmas.” You could take care of it all with one big
lie, let the daytime world believe you’ve died. That lie has
enough truth in it.

It’s a little overwhelming, like going to a cold read
audition with terminal consequences. Not to worry.
Lying gets easier alarmingly fast. And lies offer
their own reward. There is no feeling so sickeningly
wonderful as getting away with something.

58 Vampire: the Requiem

Scoring Ghouls
The Beast screams your need for blood. The Beast gives you The hungry dead take and take, but they also give back to
some desperation to strengthen your resolve. But the Beast is as the community. They spread their blood because it makes
good at coming up with a plan as a crazed shit-house rat. Time for mortals pliable. It can make a ghoul too, if you’re willing to
the Man to step up. He’s got the Kiss, and he’s got the drive, now put in the work.
he just needs a little finesse to seal the deal. How do you tilt the
machine? How do you work the angles that get the blood flowing Ghouls are the half-damned , mortals fed on vampire
into your funnel? But take a caution and a care as to what is going blood. In addition to a wicked rush, they get some of
down that funnel. Remember, it changes you. the vampire’s supernatural powers, with few of her ugly
weaknesses. Vampires use ghouls not only to do dirty work
• You eat animals, stray cats and dogs, and even a pigeon by day, but to keep in touch with the mortal world. The
once. You tell yourself you’ve got this beat, that you can most successful Masquerades are built on understanding the
continue this way forever. The easiest con to pull is on the living at least well enough to bullshit your way along, and
self. Maybe if you just mix in a few drops of human blood, ghouls can bridge the gap between the living and the dead.
that would soothe the ache in your chest.
Among other vampires, ghouls get a few scraps of respect.
• You play the angel of mercy. You haunt elderly homes. You They’re not family, not Kindred by any means… but a ghoul
spend long conversations with the conversation-starved; represents someone that another vampire was willing to
and just at about 3 A.M., when you know them well enough cultivate. Of course, that also makes ghouls vulnerable, for
that it hurts, you send them on their way and fill your belly. putting fear into the heart of a ghoul is one way to chill the
You have to talk to them first. It has to hurt going down. blood of his master.

• You prowl the most popular suicide spots. The Aokigahara A ghoul becomes an addict, feeling a bit of a vampire’s
Forest, in Mount Fuji, Japan. Nanjing Yangtze River Bridge, hunger. But human blood won’t sate this hunger. The ghoul
in Nanjing, China. The Golden Gate Bridge, in San needs Vitae.
Francisco, California. Something pulled these people to
this action, just as something pulls you to feed. On a long A vampire need not press the prospective ghoul’s lips to
enough jump, a body hits the water as if it were cement. Not his wrist. There are so many other ways to skin that cat.
all of them die on impact. You help them along.
The Serpent bites his lip, and you barely notice the copper
• You’re an EMT on the night shift. The flash of the whirling in the kiss.
lights. Humanity at the gritty ground floor. Everyone knows your
vehicle drives in that space between society and the dead — just The Haunt spits bloody phlegm in your eye, inexplicably, as
where your kind is comfortable. It’s like meals on wheels, only you pass on the midnight road. Now you sit in your apartment
you’re delivering to yourself. How long can this last? feeling more afraid than you think you ought to, wondering
if you should go get tested for some disease.
• You migrate with the food, to the most war-torn lands. You have
an old passport, expired press badge, and a camera that no longer You reach for your expensive coffee, but it tastes weird. A
works. You sleep in the earth, and all through the day you drink Shadow smiles in front of your face, but you cannot see her.
the blood that just spills and spills and soaks into the ground.
You drank from a chalice when a Lord commanded you to.
• You are an exotic dancer, and no one says no when you And now you…no…you don’t quite remember what happened.
suggest going into the back room for the special. It’s money,
and it’s cash, and they always tip bigger after the Kiss. The Savage cuts you and then herself, pressing the open
wounds together. Something wild surges between.
• You frequent the strip clubs, and always say yes to the back room.
The dancers never seem to mind your lousy tips after the Kiss. Let the conspiracy theorists prattle on to radio talk hosts.
The invasion is already happening, has been happening, one
drop at a time. The pervasive infection. Kindred can walk
down the street and smell familiar vintages on strangers.
The curse wants to spread.

The Traditions
Through us, you enter the society of liars and thieves. Three pillars bear the weight of a culture of monsters. Where
Through us, you enter the population of blood-drinkers and did they come from? There is no common origin story. No one
egos grown fat on getting away with murder. Through us, you remembers a time before them. Eternal they remain. Who first
enter the congress of corpses lacking the decency to lie still. spoke the words? Some whisper the name “Camarilla,” but it
What laws could we possibly respect? hits the cold ear the way “Camelot” touches the warm. When
we raise our heads, above the immediate keen of Beast and
There are three rules even the dead fear to tread over. The Blood, we might see the mystery of ages twining above in the
Traditions. Recite them now — you’ll find they skip right off distant dark.
the tip of your tongue.

Chapter: Two The All Night Society 59

THE FIRST TRADITION: MASQUERADE

Do not reveal your true nature to those not of the Blood.
Doing so forfeits you your claim to the Blood.

THE SECOND TRADITION: PROGENY

Sire another at the peril of both yourself and your progeny.
If you create a childe, the weight is your own to bear.

THE THIRD TRADITION: AMARANTH

You are forbidden from devouring the heartsblood of your Kindred.
If you violate this commandment, the Beast calls to your own Blood.

The conservatives say the Traditions are written into the This is not about vampires needing to quake and hide, but about
Blood, from the Beginning. They say these laws are mystically the fear humans have of what is hidden from them — just past the
enforced. Certainly the Sanctified agree. Some of their number truth of Santa Claus and all the horrible adult revelations — the
go so far as to say that Longinus himself dictated the words, his fear that if they shake even the most mundane structure, crawling
spear still slick with the blood of the messiah. things will fall out.

But a murmur runs through the subversives. They say the The Lost Visage
Traditions are so universal, so old, because of their common sense to A vampire does not lack a reflection. You just never see her
Kindred. It is good sense to hide from the herd, to not overpopulate in the mirror. The Beast knows precisely where to stand. A
the world with predators, to discourage one’s fellows from eating vampire is not a blurred mess in a photograph, but for some
him. These so-called supernatural consequences, they argue, are reason, never seems to look at the camera, or the flash smears
incidental to a vampire’s nature, and if the Traditions were so the image, or it goes over- or under-exposed.
mystically enforced, what need would there be for princes to preside
over them? The Cacophony and millennia of Kindred culture are Frustrating, yes, but hardly supernatural. Unless you are a
enough to program these three simple rules for being a monster. rogue statistics professor, manically analyzing vampire sightings
and…what was that in the mirror? Surely nothing. Surely too
The debate continues, but it misses the point. There are three much caffeine. Surely.
rules. Violating them brings pain.
It’s a defense mechanism. The vampire rolls in lies until they
The First Tradition soak into her skin. Kindred lie about their origins, lie to each other,
The zebra knows lions exist, but the zebra forgets, just long enough secrete lies to mortar their honeycomb society, lie to themselves,
to take a drink or go to sleep. So it goes with the Masquerade. This lie to make themselves seem bigger and scarier, to seem smaller
is no grand conspiracy, but a guideline for Kindred interaction with and less threatening, to seem fuckable when they should be creepy.
the mortal world. This is not about fooling the global community, Lies collect on a vampire like remora on a shark.
but making sure the upstairs neighbor does not suspect.
The Second Tradition
The Masquerade is a source of conflict in the All Night The Second Tradition is an oft-debated conundrum. If the
Society. What constitutes a breach? What is the proper society of vampires supporting it followed it to its extreme, that
response? The answers are not definitive and vary from society would not exist. We fuck. We procreate. We produce
domain to domain. That finagling room, between the gaps of more mouths to argue why we should not fuck.
interpretation, is where the opportunists can bury their rivals.
The Sanctified rage from the pulpit, speaking barbed-wire
The Kindred protect the here and the now, tonight, block sermons of Old-Testament-style reckonings. It is not our place
by bloody block. They keep the locals from getting wise — the to pass on the curse, they say. Some Kindred mythologies
crusading cop, the determined reporter. The Masquerade is a offer repeating themes: A lonely progenitor vampire creates
local issue. It means you choose, through willful act or gross companions, only to discover his or her folly too late. Those
negligence, to shit where you and yours eat. who cleave to this Tradition warn of angering that first
vampire, or the offended gods who inflicted the Curse. To
Belief does not come into it. People can believe in the supernatural. make more of the hungry dead is to bring on the wrath from
They can even believe in vampires. Knowledge is the key. So long as above or below.
the paranoid man does not suspect the bartender, the one he tells all
his crazy theories to, is Kindred, his beliefs do not matter.

60 Vampire: the Requiem

ccwtTvCfEmpiphDOtovpoGilAfhKsuomuaorautriaNuhorhneirpayrecasWknnhbniteoleEcHddskdelmrciydctitderCe.rsl,!elteau,eaeoprirek.nIutoirlcpc.essitsuaoanIalTtntruiTaedseu.tnWhqnntcis,,on.;irathlr’egtuuRsdhrtyecdweavIseekbeieweaostie.ntwltmtavansstwtkeeinBedoTatrhetpiisf’shakocidrrcllienllhioHduriounetillncbanon.sduueiareo’ttohigtntotsECIaneretmdanareghswiTigatn,u,nntilodnemweqSnlske,crrfiewggtryuaEntkessrrntjhbv.aouigw.onCeaeyenoheteooEiisottlpeEnwnOeertmr,tshomvn’tistgirvNsiwplesnsglienulycodihategim.r.etkDrgolsdidiaerpisaaenndyThsrInceeuyraagtnaTaTehgwteschkfItiyodltmmelotfnRaciehsv.ouu!nshApirecebn.tpr.etorsDsdemaBatlru.DseTnsnIheaTieottet.IlnyvnrH’i,oenodCvhcohnT.chioi.sIp’okdepestteyghurfdeIWpptdHluyhho.piOrteeonrCarcabwoeespaa,NehTIikieoglisslmuscaeoTvitrrrtlwehenCaelroaointe..hisyeIeshuksomy,nwpduytw.ScHT,efpegetareeepstaarGn,otai.siovIr,nA.eeitdrthntrmhlesTeeTtdeedwwTaoeohecdpynossLvehut.naeoorhiftsotwpsneselIphntyedAepsnuotEtrheofefaoesltedaoyBjko!lmeaiewuerlsrlrnaalrlntsueyvtredlesiaobeidTy?nmsyeeieoeudtvoyetealIe.ialshnuEns,drihnsl.DyTocmet.Tcnaml..tgiwou,oDtmywnfehiWatthhSFnbnnshoiggwaayiimenaeh’ranfganeealoottrhy.ayreem’lfskndnvcrstny,ete,rtck,ooteepii’n.uheseAtswirfnrmswnwseni.TeihgulptenNroaItioihtii.iSpsohkghtqiwmpsj.neoDhrougmnaOishue.l.ptniBest’uetletrevttiIggDaHeevortsti’iuseTImhsaertder.cohtaaTsapcyseBoiraoumenIhvelsgtaH,etcs-.tlrnTeoneeoetairchssrhgtLAostotpltonehsaeo.sehtotsdiSir.hoofesmtsvsneiAhoko’osuitmnmUur.etln.erSulnyrselelstlobglisLrOnTitsmcoteumvrlma.woodowoawHhaeaitiMkapnfRodoi.ngnlhae.lnuiEgdeiilegtlAeOCyvynatvmCcv,uRmydnhi.i.iiluNoamtneEnabsnaowtyiTrIrnluhtscgeG,eynYt’.thesSTiaeahs’oseasoahuehrIewedv,Inu.T.abvnsT.e-Oi.TiavtilsEiTnWNtnearesInwodEiaseLbertoseaTa.klyYssedHe .

Enforcement of this Tradition tends not to absolutely exclude The serial killer, the dictator, and the devil hold a tea party
siring new vampires, but limiting it, and placing the chains of with stitched-together corpses — they laugh, they profane,
responsibility on those who are allowed to breed. In some domains, they take turns making love to the prettiest cadaver — what
the prince or eldest Kindred controls the population by giving is the topic of conversation that makes them stare down at
sanction to Embrace. In other domains there is no enforcement. their gore-stained plates? Amaranth.
Some Kindred, particularly of the Circle of the Crone, see the
Embrace as a necessary rite. But there are domains that fear the The Third Tradition offers the least controversy, suffers
pillar of the Second Tradition. There are places where sire and newly the least argument, because even the most depraved fiend
vivified childe shriek from crosses or burning wicker men, crucified has trouble talking about it lightly. This is beyond murder
to whatever force the local Kindred believe the Embrace offends. or mutilation. The stakes are much more eternal. He who
devours a vampire’s heartsblood also devours the soul.
Dissenters argue that this is a law that needs no enforcement.
Populations of predators take care of themselves, and the price This is the fastest way to become a tougher, more terrible
of the Embrace is enough to control the numbers. There is a vampire. The price, however, is steep. Diablerie places the
price. The Beast takes a toll for this transgression. The sire loses Man on a hook, and dangles it before the ravening Beast.
something, a bit of personality, or maybe a piece of the Man, There is no way to become callous enough that this does not
sliced off on the altar of the Beast, where every vampire, sooner matter. The torturer and mass-murderer suffer for this act.
or later, sacrifices more and more of themselves. You take the power and some memory from your victim, but
you take more than that. Their personality bleeds into yours,
The Third Tradition confusing the already dissociate landscape of the vampire
What is the sin that makes monsters quake? Amaranth. mind. The one you hurt more than anyone can be hurt
What is the law that sociopaths fear to break? Amaranth. lives in your head, forever, and they do not wish you well.

Once you commit diablerie, the individual you were no longer
exists. Past that threshold, something else takes your shape.

Chapter: Two The All Night Society 61

W.H.,
vatwaceaosvonroBisdiniarvesuefanrlhnmeoilsrcesEweyodesd.m.gitaoiTashIennrhetdsaTaA,Ftsghtloielirindrareasodnfmns.tersePsosTccTomhrrrtneieahepottdestt,hnittafepoionomorrfarenirryee..rtssihMoshSti,weMsoomorroootneewnhwesctaeetorn’sFlreryfaespdiitetrioilnhnliordvgtdeao.aeratcckvTeneoVitndhl.inuogcesTFsptfioohseodo.r.erarrtritBgLuasiybnlenoewlaataymlth,vioseenebs,oualwwortulecaoaswyasnalgwletire’hKaelirstilicnsheedsosxreert,ienedshdrditenewsswgf,mheihhwnroooeisrepnhehoccalaesaidcsne

—Hardaiken

[Beginning of recording.]
Father Lewis: a… nd how long since your last confession?
[pause]
[garbled, voice full of static]
John Doe: A long time.
FL: Do you have any sins you wish to confess? Take your time.
JD: My sins are…manifold and multiform. I came here, tonight, only because of one.
FL: And what is that?
JD: I am a cynical creature, Father. But I now know, beyond all shadow of a doubt, that the immortal
soul exists.
FL: A reaffirmation of faith is not a sin, my—
JD: I know what a soul tastes like.
FL: Excuse me?
JD: Like Montresor, I bore a thousand insults from my Fortunato. He was my close friend, but somewhere
along the way, he became my most hated acquaintance. After one, final insult, I took revenge. I walled
him up, forever, in the catacombs of me. I drank his soul.
FL: Listen, this is a sacred ritual. You—
JD: Please hear my confession, Father. I cannot admit this to my peers. I’m suffering for my sin. I did
not comprehend. I did not fully appreciate the Third Tradition. He lives inside of me. I…I have become
the home his ghost haunts. I’m the sacred crypt of the one I most despised. I hear him laughing, right
now, rattling his chains through my halls. He means me ill, Father. He distracted me, while I crossed a
busy street, and I was struck by a car. He has learned to mimic the voice of my conscience, and tempts
me to self-destructive acts.
FL: I thinkI… think you should go now.
JD: I let the most diabolical creature I have known into my mind. He rifles through my most naked
memories. I am always exposed. Always violated! I knew the problem. With my Fortunato, I swallowed so
much evil. All I had to do was diffuse that evil with good.
FL: I don’t understand.
JD: I tried children. I filled myself with so many children. But their voices do not linger. I think
they are frightened of Fortunato. I think they hide. I know I would. But I can no longer hide from
Fortunato.
[rattling sound]
FL: What? The door?
JD: It was then that I realized I must try a priest.
FL: Help! Oh, Lord! Help!
JD: The children cry for help, Father, with mute voices. You will care for them, yes? I know you will.
You will lead them against the evil that is my Fortunato.
[sounds of violence and breaking wood (the confessional booth was found in splinters)]
[screams]
[silence]

62 Vampire: the Requiem

Breaking Tradition

The Vampire setting assumes that vampires are good at staying hidden, don’t Embrace like mad, and only rarely
cannibalize each other. The Traditions are broken regularly enough that there’s a need for law, but not enough to
break down vampire society or the veneer of the ordinary world that the Kindred hide behind.

However, we expect that in your actual games, the Traditions will be violated semi-regularly. Covering Masquerade
breaches is a classic plot hook, and it’s a major duty for characters who are members of the Invictus. The Traditions are
deliberately designed so that vampires have motivation to break them, and so that there will be drama when they do.

Sinners in the City
Bright lights, long shadows. We love the city. Glamour and
decay. The need to travel diminishes. Everything we need, and The Fun
everything that might threaten us, is here already. The city is What is the point of tear-stained immortality if you can’t have
the whole world. Take a slice, look at it with dead eyes. You a little fun? What might a dapper corpse do on a Friday night?
see all the layers. We add a few more with our Curse and our • Parties: The All Night Society is fraught with parties. There
Cacophony.
is Elysium, the meeting grounds of the dead, but mortal
The city chews us up. It is sometimes a harsh romance. We parties offer something to Kindred too. With their powers
always come back willingly. We love the city. of persuasion and stealth, even the most exclusive parties
open to the vampire. Lines in front of clubs melt. You have
We pray she loves us back. a backstage pass to city life. What do you do with it?

The Food • Entertainment: Movies, plays, concerts, and shows of all types
The masses teem. This is important when feeding. It is not are not just a frivolous luxury to Kindred, but a practical tool.
merely a matter of blood volume, for even the smallest town There are few quicker ways to absorb the culture than through
has enough blood to sate a vampire, but the ability to hunt art. Movies offer slang. Songs and plays give context. Do you
unnoticed. The thickest cloud to cover a mortal mind is apathy, stay in the audience? Or do you take to the stage?
and apathy is achieved with ad nauseam. Face after face after
face, and who can keep track of it all? Mortals have only so much • Voyeurism: Many Kindred can walk unseen or have senses that
love to give; that stuff don’t run cheap. Someone vanishes in a allow them to observe people from afar. Everyone is either a
small town, and it is a tragedy. Someone vanishes in the city, voyeur, or skilled at self-deception. Vampires often watch mortals,
in the quagmire of media over-stimulation, and…what were we in their natural element, at their most honest moments. You
talking about again? can watch drug deals, listen to confessions, haunt crime scenes,
shadow celebrities. Maybe you have senses that allow you to gaze
The Folks deeper into people. What color does his soul turn when he’s
There are communities in the city, both living and dead, that high on cocaine, when he has a spiritual revelation, when he’s
play to one’s Masquerade and one’s Requiem. In the city, the two fucking his girlfriend’s sister? You get to know all these things.
can weave in and out of one another. Cities offer community What do you do? What do you want to witness most?
activities (concerts, open mic poetry, sporting events, college
night courses, etc.) that the Kindred can enter and leave with What’s Here?
relative anonymity. Here we can warm ourselves by the heat of The city, she offers much. She spreads a bounty of food. Faces
humanity. It is important to be in the crush of people, for the vanish within her, and no one notices. She offers hearth and
Beast feeds on isolation. Here we can learn the tricks of the home. She nestles the vampire, safe from the sun, in her many
Man, if for no other reason than to have more finesse as hunters. pockets and abandoned dens. She has shade to spare. She offers
And we can cool ourselves on Kindred companionship. While a congregation of dead, where Kindred can play at community.
vampires do dwell in more sparsely populated areas, they rarely
do so in numbers that could be considered a community. The Feeding Grounds
city allows the vampire to move back and forth, run hot and For all the rusty, clockwork complexity of Kindred intrigue and
cold, between people and monsters. their Danse Macabre, most conflicts stem from this. Hungry dead

Chapter: Two The All Night Society 63

mutts scrape by, night to night, with dangerously unpredictable • Homeless Shelter: You volunteer at the neighborhood soup kitchen
hunting. The more comfortable vampire establishes a place where or shelter. This comes with a certain level of respect and trust from
she knows the odds, the escape routes, and all the quirks. What the community. It is a beautiful arrangement, you feed others as
sort of feeding ground have you carved out of the night? they feed you. You creep through the rows of spring cots in the
wee hours, bed to bed, so many you don’t need to take much
• Slum Housing: You put down a greasy wad of money to from any one person. The shudders, mutters, and moans do not
become a slum lord of the night. This may be your haven too, sound any different from all of the other shudders, mutters, and
though eating where you sleep can be tricky. It’s a stocked moans. The Masquerade practically takes care of itself when you
larder. They cram as many warm bodies as they can into the deal with the least fortunate strata of society. The Kiss is the only
cramped confines of low income housing. The high rotation joy many of these derelicts have, you lie to yourself.
rate in tenants keeps people from becoming too familiar with
you and ensures fresh blood. Better still, they call you to come • Conventions: You stalk the local convention center and
to them, and are pleasantly surprised by how quickly you nearby hotels. There is always a convention going on.
reply at 3 A.M. to fix the problem that suddenly manifested. Professionals and fans of all stripes gather, and many find they
want to drink, or have sex in hotels. The feeding is prime, and
• The Night Club: This is the classic. You may not own the club, the regular rotation ensures your face will not be recognized.
but you have staked it out as yours in Kindred circles. The hot You might even purchase a badge and see a seminar or two.
press of bodies and heavy beat vibrating the chest makes you The Requiem is long. You may as well learn something.
feel alive. You and your friends play games of “speed-feeding”
during the intermittent bouts of strobe lights — so many evil • Midnight Mass: Not the ritual of the Sanctified, but the
little deeds can happen in the disorienting flicker — the Beast mortal gatherings. Some Kindred avoid churches, but you
knows just where to weave in the millisecond interludes are above that. Here you have regular night gatherings of
between flashes. They never see you coming. large groups of mortals. Cities contain churches of many

64 Vampire: the Requiem

denominations. The advantage here is that you go in knowing In a society of egomaniacal predators, neutral ground is a
what your potential food wants to hear. necessary institution. Elysiums are agreed upon locations where
Kindred who have not run afoul of the establishment can gather
• AA Meetings: Recovering addicts were made for vampires. without fear of being harmed.
Groups of people who are off balance, who maybe need a
shoulder to cry on, who give in to temptation. The Kindred In some cities, the Elysium travels like a floating market or a
might even find some empathy. No one knows addiction secret show. Often the sites are fixed. Some cities define territories
like the hungry dead. Any vampire can stand up and speak in radial slices reaching from the spoke of a major Elysium, so that
of his “addiction” with complete sincerity (and once you can each major domain theoretically has access to the neutral center.
generate that, you have it made).
The promise of safety from direct physical harm does not
Havens extend to protection from treachery. Kindred paw at each
You must hide from the sun. You may as well do it in a place other with their dread abilities and profane arts — this is not
you enjoy, something better than the simple four walls and a forbidden. Customs vary, but feeding is often not allowed. There
roof we discussed earlier. What den do you dig out? are so many things that can go wrong.

• The Penthouse: The standard for the powerful night child You are out on the town, at the gala ball of all monsters.
with class. The corpse in a vampire likes the lowest portion What do you do to impress?
of a given place, following its crypt instincts to hide below.
But the predator in her exalts in heights, in looking down The City as State
like a bird of prey, in seeing the grand scope of the cityscape In the All Night Society, cities become city states. Their
as a tangible board game that she can reach out and grasp. culture and boundary lines only illumine when the sun goes
down. Vampire hierarchy often rises to an apex. This just comes
• Storage Units: Havens on the cheap. These can be locked up naturally to predators. Often there is a vampire at the top, call her
tight, once you know the tricks. Prince or Boss or Exalted One or Bishop or President. Domains
are authoritarian regimes, governments of tooth and claw and
• House Boat: Many Kindred would not find a floating haven hyena laughter. Some princes are more openly brutal than others.
secure enough. But you like the thrill, tempered with the
help of a trusted ghoul. You like the ocean; it makes you feel In the government of the dead, it does not pay to micromanage.
young. When you have to leave a domain in a hurry, your Princes rule by ruling others. It is not only to the elders to wield
haven comes with you. influence over industry, organizations, and turf. There are many
forms and flavors of power. Where might you make your mark?
• The Haunted Attraction: These usually pop up seasonally,
in October, but you have found a year-round haunted The political machine has grinding teeth. Blood is the
entertainment complex to nest in. You thrill at the gaudy lubricant. Fear is the power source. Fear is the prime motivator
ambiance and smell of latex. Your grotesque or bestial of vampire participation. But this is not just fear of the big
features go unnoticed, and sometimes you act as part of the bad elders. When the shit hits the fan, it is good to have a
show for kicks. In the chaos of smoke and shrieks, you’re just scary vampire political machine grinding away all dangers
another attraction. The presence of your Curse only helps to paste. There are Masquerade breaches, outside vampires,
the reputation and attendance of the establishment. This is and other things that go bump in the night. This is when the
the closest association between the horror of your existence fanged machine shines. Never underestimate the ability of a
and joy. You drink down the sweetness of those laughing conglomerate of selfish individuals to come together when a
screams for all that they are worth. common danger approaches. Vampire justice is ruthless and
beautifully effective in these moments.
• The Pet Cemetery: You know the secret of sleeping in the
earth. Yet you do not wander, do not slumber in any random Kindred political systems run an exquisite spectrum of
patch of soil. You find respite in the place where the people of variation, as diverse as all the deadly ecosystems of the earth.
your community go to bury their pets. They take that which is
most beloved, and they plant it. You like the feel of that, the The Princedom
layers of nostalgia soaking into your bones. It’s a bittersweet He is a man of wealth and taste. By force of will and arms, not
note of loneliness that harmonizes with your Requiem. to mention a certain old world charisma, he’s earned the respect
and fear of the Damned. He’s taken on the mantle of ruthless
Elysium leader and magnanimous patron: the prince. He’s advised by
It has different names, from domain to domain, but let us elders of each clan, and representatives of each covenant. Harpies
call it Elysium. It is an afterlife of sorts. This is the All Night critique the court, making sure each vampire’s Masquerade stays
Society, distilled. Here the intrigues of the dead play out at plausible. They all hold power, but the true instrument of the
varying levels of civility. prince’s will is his sheriff and her hounds, pragmatic monsters
who put dissenters and liabilities to the torch.

Chapter: Two The All Night Society 65

Sample Cloister: The Four Fiefs

Once upon a time, there was a kingdom of four fiefs in central Illinois. There was Peoria and East Peoria, and
across the river, down a goblin road, was Bloomington and Normal. A prince arose, a powerful Lord who called
himself Remus, after the legendary founder of the necropolis below Rome. He had a plan to unite four tiny fiefs
into a larger kingdom cut off from all other kingdoms by the Woods.

What are the Woods? The Kindred cling to cities. Everywhere else is the Woods. The Four Fiefs float in an
ocean of fields, barren highways, and tiny ghost towns, where blood is thin on the ground, where hiding places
from the sun are scarce. The Kindred do not like looking across the miles and seeing the horizon smiling sinister.
The wolves and the Weird roam such places.

What is the Weird? There are other things than vampires that lope in the night, but have no names, and the
Kindred do not like what they cannot name. Even bogeymen have bogeymen. Inside the Four Fiefs was safety,
prosperity, and feeding. Outside was horror and death and the cries of owls.

One might wonder how Prince Remus ruled such a place. The power of the prince rested on the shoulders of
his four barons. He picked them from his covenant, the Invictus, and his clan, the Gangrel. Four old monsters
who did not fear the Woods.

In every Kindred lurks the Beast. But the Gangrel Beast is not a nasty abstract. Their Beasts have teeth and
claws and wings and fur swimming under the skin. The Savages can talk to the coyote, skip between truck stops,
and sleep in the earth. All the world is a haven. And so, the four barons and their children were messengers
and ferrymen, guiding their shivering Kindred through the Woods, and Remus ruled a connected Kingdom.
Everyone needed the Gangrel, and so everyone needed the prince. Then it all went bad.

The prince forgot whom he owed his power to. The Savages tolerate insults only so long. The barons dragged
their prince from his coffin. They took him into the Deep Woods, in a field where scarecrows come alive.

The barons said, “Remus, you will suckle at the four teats of the She-Wolf no longer. This is your test. Let the
Weird take you!” They hobbled him and left him in the field. He was never seen again.

The Four Fiefs cracked. Each baron now rules separately. They snap at each other, and the nights are violent.
The Woods and the Weird creep in — not just in the fields, but in unmarked alleys, unclaimed warehouses. Every
door and keyhole could lead to the Woods. The Kindred huddle in their tiny villages. Huddling they remain, for
they need the Savages more than ever. The Gangrel are the dread psychopomps. None of the other Kindred
dare to travel the short distances between the Fiefs without them. And no one is willing to travel beyond that.

The fairy tale continues.

The Coalition seen strange and terrible things that bind them together. The
Domains run by various kinds of coalitions do exist, though Second Tradition all but does not exist here.
they are not common. Perhaps Carthians won, and rule by a
vampire Senate. Perhaps the Ordo Dracul runs the city as a A theocracy may also form around a religion of the Damned
great experiment of politics divided by ley lines, intersecting at that is neither the Spear nor the Circle. Vampire Theocracies
multiple and equal points of power. There may be a collection can be frightening places, and yet they offer monsters powerful
of Invictus elders, each of power so equal, no one can decide on inspiration and direction. Participation in such realms is much
a prince; and so a tense council of nobles is formed to prevent more enthusiastic. Times are good, unless you are a heretic.
war on the streets. Coalitions are usually no less authoritarian.
Cloisters
The Theocracy Welcome to the country of xenophobia. Cloisters are cut-off
Spirituality is powerful leverage in politics. Look at the cities, completely isolated from Kindred society at large. Travel
mortals. As secular as countries like the U.S. have become, they for the dead is dangerous, and cities are independent, and
are still swayed by the clash of religions. A city is dominated Kindred mistrust outsiders — but inter-domain communication
by the Lancea et Sanctum. Midnight Mass is conducted often happens (especially in the information age). Not so with
before every Elysium. Attendance is not officially mandatory, cloisters. They are the true dead zones. Off the grid. Lights out.
but everyone knows what is good for her. The Traditions are
held to the letter, punishments for infringement are severe. A city might become cloistered by a particularly effective
Alternatively, the Circle of the Crone runs the late night show. authoritarian regime. Outside communication is controlled by
A grand hierophant oversees the domain through various priests the powers that be. They allow no one to enter. Perhaps you
and priestesses. Everyone has bled on the altar. Everyone has live under the thumb of a harsh Kindred dictator. Or maybe
you are blessed to exist in a paradise of the Damned, one that
is jealously guarded from outsiders.

66 Vampire: the Requiem

Inversely, a cloistered city may be a domain where no one leaves, by pain of Final Death. You awake every night in a
is allowed out. A city plagued by Malkavia. The majority madhouse city, struggling to survive against the lunatics.
of the Kindred here are mad. Neighboring domains have Realities warp. Have you been infected? Would you be able
banded together to quarantine the doomed realm. No one to tell if you were?

Grace of Monsters

Michael,

I so enjoyed speaking with you at church. And may I say how refreshing it is to see a knight of the
First Estate so dedicated and passionate in his attendance of Midnight Mass?

Our conversation was cut short. Society. That was the topic. Why do the Damned seek the Damned? It
should not come so naturally to us. We are lone predators. Our hackles rise at the slightest competition,
because sinners are tasty, and the dark teems with tasters. We are tigers loping in the forests of the
night. Yet we seek immortal hands and eyes to frame our fearful symmetry. Why?

Perhaps our cadaverous skulls are reliquaries of vestigial artifacts, the behaviors etched into dead
mammalian synapses reading as illumined script. We are vessels filled with divine curse, yet we are still
molded from the breathing clay.

Perhaps we seek the company of the only ones who can relate. For who else knows what it is to mortify
the mortal flesh with our teeth? Loneliness, unchecked, can lead to the sin of procreation, from which
we must abstain.

Perhaps it is the silent coaching of forward-thinking instincts, the desire of our hunger to place us near
our fellows for that future night when the human vintage will not suffice.

Perhaps it is fear. Just as His flocks of sheep gather together and huddle around the fire (and with
good cause), so too do even we, the apex fiends, have our own bogeymen. Have you heard the owl-winged
stories, passing like contagion, amongst the barbarian dregs at the edges of our domain?

We are a society of immortals, but we are not completely stagnant. The young Firebrands paint
pictures of ancient Kindred nervous of cell phones, startling at the honk of every motorcar. This is not
so. I have had the honor of serving as liaison to the Eclipsed at our church. I aid those elder Sanctified
waking from the long slumber, easing their transition into the new age. So I have some perspective.

Our dead minds are active during torpor. They hone themselves on nightmares, preparing for the ever
more modern world. This Long Night of the Soul purifies us for our ghastly purpose. The elders awaken
with soft, pliable minds. They mimic the herd, picking up new tricks with the frightening alacrity of
a toddler playing with a smartphone. An elder who went to sleep after the Great Chicago Fire recently
showed me how to use this thing called Twitter.

We awaken in our crypts to exciting new nights. We scan popular tourist spots with public web cams,
gauging the flow of the herd. We hunt through Internet dating sites, where desperation wafts, like a
musk, off personal profiles. There are even new forms of seduction. The kine have sex through digital
text. Did you know that? We are learning new ways to revel and sin and test the breathing sinners.
We can do these things because we are not moldering corpses from the dark ages. We are the Lord’s perfect
predators, released as a plague on humankind for every century to come. We drink the blood of a new
age, and we are that age. The grace of monsters is terribly beautiful.

This is the age of electronic social networking. And so our society changes. The kine socialize with
averted eyes, buried in glowing screens. They interact, constantly, but become more distant — floating
islands of ego broadcasting at each other. Humanity is developing a social model that is so familiar to
our own, yet with new innovations and nuances, and so we learn.

We are all mastering the art of being alone together.

Alone with you,

Abbess Gilda

Chapter: Two The All Night Society 67

Underground Culture A ROOM IS A PLACE WHERE
In the placid suburbs, families link together, forming a merry YOU HIDE FROM WOLVES
chain, enjoying a Labor Day cookout and block party, so many
happy mouths enjoying a bounty of meat. Yet noses wrinkle. Just THAT’S ALL ANY ROOM IS
a hint, a waft, the slightest of notion that something is corrupt,
that something nasty is going on beneath the surface. None Mortals walk the streets, and there is a humming in the back
of them see the feast beneath the Johnsons’ deck — a dead fox of their lizard brains. A music in the graffiti, in the underground
writhing in slow, undead motion, as it bursts open with writhing performance art, in the rhymes penned on bathroom stalls,
maggots, all of them blasphemously mimicking the feast outside, flyers blowing as discordant notes on the wind. Walk into the
all of those happy mouths masticating spoiled meat. right succession of alleys, basements, and bars, and they all
weave together into a disjointed song. The mortal can’t read
In a baytown, a father and daughter happily trip-trap down the music, but senses an elusive cadence. The mortal wants to
the docks after a good day’s recreational fishing. They have not hum along to the Cacophony.
looked carefully enough into the mouth of the catch to see the
parasite crustacean that attached itself there, in the cold dark, The Cacophony is the vector of Kindred culture. This is how
drinking the blood from the fish tongue till it atrophied and they communicate within and beyond their territories and cities.
fell away. The scuttling creature anchored itself there, taking The Cacophony is the underground journalism, literature, and
the place of the organ in its ghastly masquerade. art of the Damned. It has always lurked as a hollow echo to
mortal culture, but saw its renaissance in the 1960s, growing
In the city, a mother takes her toddler for ice cream. “Look, alongside the counterculture of breathers. Vampire samizdat!
Daniel, a hawk!” The boy laughs from his stroller at the bird of
prey’s flight. As the adults talk, Daniel sees the sparrow hawk The Burlesque Grotesque
catch a pigeon. It can’t kill the larger prey outright, just snares
it in the barbed wire mesh of its talons, begins plucking and There is a traveling group of performers the Kindred
eating the pigeon alive, pulling away rib meat and, eventually, know as the Burlesque Grotesque. This artistic conclave
organs. Murder by tiny beakfulls. Daniel starts crying, but has chapter houses in a few cities in the local region.
doesn’t have the vocabulary to explain why. His melting ice Troupes consist of Nosferatu, shape-shifting Gangrel,
cream drips away like innocence. and other bloodlines whose Beasts express themselves
through the flesh. These inhuman and bestial features
All these worlds, layered on top of each other. But the borders are accentuated with black light reactive paint and
cannot hold. Something always bleeds through. We have ebbing LED lights, to accomplish an alien beauty. Every
interrogated personal Requiems, but how do they link together? vampire broadcasts his own personal damnation.
Now we enter a masqued ball, a legion of secret revelers wearing
their masks. The curtain billows. Performances are held either in large, underwater
tanks or in vacuum-sealed rooms with no oxygen.
In a coffee house, during open mic, a poet, too nervous to All performances occur in black-lit darkness. The
expose herself through her own words, instead reads a passage burlesque dancers writhe, glowing and blinking,
from a well-worn book: in displays not unlike that of deep sea animals
communicating through bioluminescence. They
“There was much of the beautiful, much of the wanton, much emulate these strange creatures from landscapes
of the bizarre, something of the terrible, and not a little of that never touched by the sun.
which might have excited disgust.”
There is an apocryphal tale of a mortal hipster
She does not even realize how well she summed up an invisible who infiltrated the vampire audience, only to die
world almost touching her own — she can almost sense it, an of asphyxiation in an airless black box theatre.
underground culture, something hipper than hip, something
she could see if she just decoded the graffiti tags, Craigslist ads, Over the Cacophony, Kindred rave about the
and show posters for bands she has never heard of. She does transcendental experience of seeing the Burlesque
not know the strange poetry that is read in this room, late at Grotesque. In this way, the clever conclave spreads,
night, when the sign says: CLOSED — the odd figures doing an never invading a domain, but simply waiting for
interpretive dance to “Candy Colored Clown,” in the basement, the demand to grow and a city to ask them to visit.
to an audience snapping cold fingers — the pleading whimpers Another theatre is raised, in a slow and steady spread.
coming from the locked closet and the gummy sound of limbs
struggling in a duct-tape web. Some say they are simply an art house coterie,
easing their Requiems through expression, having no
The Cacophony other agenda. Others claim that this is a clandestine
At a crime scene, the police do not read into the hidden conspiracy, with unknown goals, communicating to
context — a Savage warning a Lord — in the words painted on each other through their light displays (aided by
the wall: enforced sympathy of the Blood), in ways as subtle
and complex as the deep marine creatures they
emulate.

Word on the wire is they’re coming to your
town next.

68 Vampire: the Requiem

Many in the All Night Society assume this was the brainchild Soon, you’ll know the words. Soon, shivering alleyways will
of the Carthians. But no, the movement was spearheaded whisper riddles to you.
by youthful elements of the Invictus, who needed ways to
communicate basic messages regarding Masquerade safety — a Learn the Cacophony, and you’ll never be alone again.
song of silence. The signal spread, solidifying into branching
explosions of cultural artifacts reaching across covenants: Conclaves
books, pamphlets, mix tapes, private gallery exhibitions, and Kindred are local creatures, no? They are their domain, and
secret shows. It is an information network that is more cultural their domain is them. Travel is complicated, if not deadly. And
than administrative. yet some see the horizon as a dare. Some howl to the sky, and
occasionally a response echoes back. The Cacophony gives them
The signal never stopped. Naturally, there has been ongoing a more far-flung voice, shotgun communication, messages in
retaliation from conservative elements, but the Kindred are bottles written in blood.
clandestine by nature. The Cacophony sings to them. The
signal continues. Vampires form cliques, and when those cliques stretch over
multiple domains, they evolve into a conclave. The term comes
New information technology gives the Cacophony even from the historical habit of Kindred gathering at some midpoint
more vectors to spread. If you could just find the right URL, or neutral ground. This could be an ancient graveyard, an all-nite
the correct online zine, the demo track of that experimental diner, an abandoned theme park, or the ballroom at the Ramada
band, a whole new world would open up to swallow you. As it Inn. Some conclaves meet in the occulted corners of the Internet.
turns out, Kindred have almost been emailing and tweeting for
centuries — short cryptic missives claw-carved into stone walls When every word comes fang-punctured, it can be hard for
or the condom machines of truck stop bathrooms. monsters to call other monsters friend; but there is something
reassuring in the relative permanence of vampire correspondents,
Tonight, vampires can go through all the social motions: and it is always better to deal with the devils one knows.
seduction, jokes, debates, even bitter arguments, with scores of
humans, with the safety of space between them. Nosferatu glory Conclaves can take root for myriad reasons. A group of
in this age of faceless communication, can sext the mortals who ancillae stretch out into a cross-domain coterie, to better gather
would otherwise reject their twisted forms. Elders can tickle and share information. A regional conclave forms around a
their complex webs from any location, just by caressing the specific creed or agenda and behaves much like a covenant. A
glowing, liquid plasma of a screen. The hungry dead become powerful elder spreads her bloodline across a region, keeping
digital ghosts. her descendants tightly linked through blood and fear. A group
of elders, who spent their dead youth as a coterie, spread out to
The vampire experience is fraught with visceral horrors, but all nearby cities, keeping in contact, but keeping their distance
this is one of the dark joys. Open your dead eyes, and the city as their hungry egos grew too big to be contained in one domain.
speaks to you, revealing a whole new dimension stenciled on the
metropolis you knew. The blitzkrieg of signals takes coherence. Some conclaves even form global factions, though their
Every street, nook, and cranny hums. You can hum along too. influence is thinly spread.

The Danse Macabre
We have heard the Requiem for one vampire, but what you don’t know, and you don’t know most things. These are the
happens when the song is joined? How do they intertwine? A thrilling tales of running. Run, run, run!
chorus forms, opening up new possibilities as monsters engage
each other. Here lurks the menagerie, an unkindness of Beasts. Neonates survive night to night, forming loose groups.
Each one of the Damned has a different song, but when those Mistakes are inevitable. Plans have to change on the turn of
songs play over each other, the dance begins. the unlucky dime. You are the mutt, the down-and-out, the
fleet-footed scavenger staying one step ahead of calamity.

The Cannibal Totem Pole Revel in the excitement of the unpredictable. The elder
Three strata of vampire society must coexist in the Danse knows what he will be doing in 50 years. You don’t know
Macabre. These are the stories that swallow one another. where you’ll be in 10 minutes. Yours is the desperate power,
the x-factor. Everyone else, ancillae on up, will underestimate
The Neonate you. They have their reasons, but you can surprise them.
Sometimes it takes just one moment to shake the totem
These are the coyote stories. pole. Neonates can even surprise themselves, in wonderful
and horrible ways.

They are the tales rooted in emotion and the fundamentals In the All Night Society, the neonates bear the dread weight
of the vampire experience. These are naked fangs running on of all above them. They are the numerous, the expendable.
raw nerves, and moment to moment struggles with the Beast. The ancillae influence you, and so do the elders through them.
You’re a monster so close to being human. You are a predator Gravity is the unfair tyrant; blood flows up and shit flows down.
afraid of all the bigger predators. You are afraid of all the things If you could just survive another night.

Chapter: Two The All Night Society 69

The Ancilla The Elder

These are the wolf stories. This is the tiger story.

These are the tales of politics and the dead community. These This is the tale based on ideas and shadowy influence. It
are the smooth monsters wearing damnation like a stylish coat. is lonely at the top, and the apex predator can afford a little
Immortal intrigue, thy name is ancillae. The middle management of malaise, a little reflection, belly bloated with slaughter. There is
the Damned deal in grim hierarchies, predator-and-prey posturing, enough room and time for turning thoughts inward, and that
and the complex social stratum of bloodsuckers. The game turns is a very dangerous place to look. From neonate to ancilla, you
more subtle, but the ancilla is just savvy enough to get ahead. have collected a gallery of transcendental horrors. It is only
now that you get to tour it.
You still have the trappings of humanity, but they are
weatherworn. The Man might just be a tool to make a In the All Night Society, you perch your bulk atop all others.
cleverer Beast. Innocence is barely a memory. Betrayal is like a You are a walking conspiracy, spreading influence over a
frightening ladder; you just take it one rung at a time, and you domain, or even a region. You let your voice drift down to the
reach heights you never thought possible. ancillae. You barely notice the neonates. It is hard to identify
them as individuals. There is your hungry self, and there are
In the All Night Society, you are one of the movers and others. What more distinction need be made?
shakers. You have some influence over the clueless neonates,
and you better use it, because you’re just smart enough to Humanity is a half-forgotten dream. Elders are the unmarked
understand the barest depths of how the elders are using you. grave of many. The names on the tombstones dotting your
Fuck or be fucked. Welcome to the damnation game. shriveled soul are worn nearly smooth. You are no longer just
a vampire, you’ve evolved into something alien and inscrutable.
You are the pupa for something even more unknowable. All
you need to do is survive the long chrysalis, and you might get
to spread your terrible wings.

70 Vampire: the Requiem

Malkavia

The M came like a thief in the nig ht. No one knew how it spread. It swims in the Blood,
true, but we still do not comprehend the vectors. Does the bite of a Malkavian transfer
the affliction? Must the infected Vitae be consumed? Does skin-to-skin contact suffice?
Active transport seems unlikely. Stockton, a Lord, surmised that only the weak-minded,
and those predisposed to perversion, are susceptible. After the outbreak, we found him
trying to escape his epidermis. Nessah, a fellow member of the Order, speculated that close
proximity was enoug h, that the M could spread via concentration of derang ed thoug ht. After
the outbreak, I found her in the lab, attempting to animate teddy bears by replacing the
stuffing with a transfusion of g rave worms. She would not put down the scalpel, and so I left.
Collating.

How does the M spread? I hypothesize that there are several, if not dozens, of variables.
Individually, these variables are inert, but in certain combinations, they trip the tumblers to
madness. The sheer number of combination possibilities makes detection difficult. Ancient
record sugg ests that infected blood may remain dormant for centuries, even skipping whole
g enerations, but still passing from Embrace to Embrace. This possibility is fascinating, but
also confounding ly outside the scope of the current study. I would require centuries of
observation in order to test the theory.

Data collection continues. Subjects are plentiful, but the work is difficult. The tedium has
made me irritable. My clothes no long er seem to fit properly. But that is impossible. Collating.

What is the history of the M? In the Dark Ag es, the afflicted were better accepted in
Kindred society, filling a niche that resembled both jester and mag ician. Their preternatural
insig hts and prophesies accepted as a boon. But the 14th century broug ht the bubonic
plag ue, and paranoia of contag ion. The Demented became outcasts. Are they oracles or
plag ue rats? Collating.

Outside, the laug hing and the screaming never ceases. It is damag ing to focused
concentration.

The term “Malkavia” comes from a supposed patient zero, a Russian Kindred named Malkav.
This Demented was famously studied, at leng th, in the 18th century, by a fellow Drag on.
Documentation supports the account, thoug h I find it doubtful Malkav is truly the first
Demented. Still, the notion of a patient zero beg s investig ation. See Codex Malkavia (I
cannot seem to find my texts of late).

Security in the lab has been compromised. I continue to find babbling notes, penned on
paper and taped to the walls and other surfaces. I disinfect the lab every time I find one,
yet they multiply. How do they g et in?

What is the nature of the M? Bishop Treader says it is a second curse laid into the blood
of the Damned by God. If this is true, then my Order has another holy curse to undo. Since
the outbreak, Treader becomes homicidal when he hears or sees the number nine.

Delaney Downs, of the Mekhet, said that Malkavia comes from the touch of the divine, but
is not a curse. Divinity, she says, burns, and where the psyche is scorched thin is where the
lig ht of miraculous vision shines throug h. After the outbreak, Delaney’s personality shattered,
and she now only appears in the g uise of other Kindred. Where or who she is remains
unknown.

Chapter: Two The All Night Society 71

Perhaps the M is an evolutionary step for the Kindred, our supernatural senses and minds
becoming more and more aware of a super-reality. The in-between phase of such an adaptation
mig ht be clumsy. Whatever its nature, the M resists all treatment both scientific and mystical.
This terrifies the immortals, thoug h predators do not confide fear to one another, as a
g eneral thing.

The study was larg ely academic until the outbreak. We do not know the cause. The M
spread in such numbers. As always, lack of knowledg e is the prelude to hysteria. Society
fell. Court ceased to function when the prince refused to trust anyone wearing clothes.
Later, the Primog en tried to rule as a council. As court reopened, the leader of the
Carthians stood, screaming that she was sane, that she could never be insane, and everyone
beg an screaming, and then they all laug hed at the queer faces they made. They mig ht still
be laug hing now. It was decided that the infection would be cleansed by killing the infected,
but then the Demented outnumbered the lucid.

The strang e notes continue. I find them when I wake, in the lab and in my haven, taped to
the walls, to the tables, even to my forehead. The missives are written on scraps of 90g, pH
neutral, chlorine-free paper, whitened with calcium carbonate. Just the sort of stationary I
prefer, only it is not penned in my handwriting, but in a feminine Spencerian Script (which I
eschew for the more workman Palmer Method). The pleading notes g ive me incomprehensible
warning s. Each one is sig ned, “D.D.”

After the outbreak, the princes of the surrounding domains ordered a ruthless quarantine.
Whosoever leaves the city shall be put to Final Death. Whosever from this city surfaces in
another domain shall be put to Final Death. There is no escape. This is Bedlam City.

A voice mimicking my own calls out from the cellar. It beg s me to open the door. I dare not.
I dare not! We are all on the Ship of Fools. I want to g et off. I don’t belong here. There’s
been a terrible mistake. I don’t belong here!

The Predatory Note turn becomes like the vampire. Travel is more complex than
An agitated beast paces your ribcage. It recognizes other walking from neighborhood to neighborhood. Every street
Beasts — smells them, sees them, feels them, warns you by the you cross could insult another monster. Ignorance is rarely an
prickling of your neck hair. It is an aura, a telltale, preternatural acceptable excuse to the tooth and claw law of the Beast. Do
friction between vampires when they meet. It broadcasts the you dare walk down the road?
measure and flavor of one monster’s Damnation to the other.
This is the All Night Society, your society. The space between
And with their Beasts so announced, the Kindred must you and all of your fellows is filled with gnashing hyenas. When
decide how to respond. How will you react to the Gangrel’s the laughter sounds, will you keep your cool?
animal stink, to the Ventrue’s lordly stare, to the Daeva’s
intoxicating grace, to the Nosferatu’s freakish miasma, to the The Sympathetic Note
Mekhet’s nimbus of suffocating silence? How will they react Blood calls to Blood, adding an eerie, connective pitch to
to you? What is the texture of your inner monster? You might the chorus. The Damned are lone predators, but they are not
tear into each other. You might shake hands. One may take a islands. The Blood recognizes. The Vitae that oozes through the
higher place in the pecking order. You might even break the still heart knows its own. The Blood knows the sire, the sibling,
furniture of the nearest hourly motel. even the clan, even when the vampire isn’t conscious of it.

Domains form from networks of these predatory auras. Turf No matter how selfish the Kindred might be, the Blood
is the primary conflict between vampires. Turf means food. And ties them together. Family matters. Meetings between related
turf becomes personal, because the vampire is changed by the Kindred, sire and childe, take horribly dramatic tones. They
influence of the hunting ground, and the hunting ground in

72 Vampire: the Requiem

feel the tidal pull of each other. The common blood makes except when it isn’t. Love is the anxiety of not knowing what
them more susceptible to their preternatural charms, the arts the other thinks of you. Love is insecurity. Love is fretting over
of the Beast, and sorcery. wrong steps. Love is explosive jealousy. Love is fearing harm
coming to your lover. Love is a scuttling swarm of insecurities
Blood ties can go horribly wrong. Hard enough to be a building termite mounds of contempt for those who would
monster; you are anchored to other monsters. When Katrina stoop to choose us. Love is a prelude to horror.
tore apart New Orleans, related Kindred the country over
frenzied in one great nightmare wave. There were vampire riots. Now give all of these things the razor-edge of preternatural
The Masquerade frayed. codependence. Love is the potential energy of the raised
guillotine blade. Love is the reassuring knowledge that you
What does it mean that the Blood knows and reacts? What could hurt them as much as they could hurt you.
does the Blood whisper between us? What is the Blood plotting?
It has a name, so it happens often enough, and Kindred
The Cannibalistic Note society frowns on it, either because they are cold-hearted
The simplest note. The most foreboding note. It’s the kind of monsters who have forgotten what love is, or because they are
heavy bass that rattles the rib cage and reverberates the heart to not fucking stupid. Hard to say.
something akin to beating. Kindred do not always talk about
it, but it hangs over their heads — the simple knowledge that Kisses and love. Even the dead know to fear them.
any vampire who lasts long enough will eventually be forced
to feed on their own. Solace

Any of your elders might need to eat you. At least a little. How There is a drug. It comes in a tiny, silver syrette.
old do they have to be? How should you know? They don’t wear And that tiny needle goes under the tongue. When
pins. Can you concentrate during polite conversation? When it goes off, it’s liquid nostalgia. It feels like a lover
her ancient, unblinking eyes fall on you, do you feel like one from those deep, deep dreams, when you wake up
of those ridiculous cartoon characters who turn into a hot dog in tears at the loss of this fictional, half-remembered
or steak under the hungry gaze of his fellow? Even worse, her person — a love so deep, yet so fleeting, that it washes
predatory aura probes you with an invisible tongue the entire away the shower spray. And then burning. Your body
time. What if you taste good? is burning. It hurts so good. The dead cells hum. The
veins thrum. The heart turns over in a sluggish beat.
Dead Taboos You feel human. You feel fantastic.
Despite being blasphemies themselves, the ambulating dead
have taboos. These are not the primal laws of respect for hunting At least that’s the rumor. They say the drug makes
grounds or the terrible abomination of diablerie, but rather the the dead alive, or close to it, for one night. The body
social gaffes of the Damned. warms. The food has taste, and the wine makes you
drunk again. You shed your supernatural powers,
One taboo regards the Kiss. A vampire’s bite transmits and the hunger dies away. For one night.
some of the corruption that animates her. This clouds the
judgment of the victim, subduing with pleasure or domination. Yeah, but where do those silver syrettes come
The Kiss normally does not affect another vampire the way it from? An Ordo Dracul experiment? They seem
does mortals, but if one pushes, even one’s fellow dead can be just as mystified. An Unaligned junkie says the
overcome. The All Night Society frowns on Kindred invoking stuff is made from the blood of women who cut
the Kiss on one another. It’s an insult. Throats have been themselves. But what does that scrag know? The
ripped out over less. new Sanctified recruit says it’s an abomination
brewed by the Devil himself. But she’s always
Another taboo is perversion — a reciprocated blood bond thumping that razor-wire bible.
between two or more vampires. The Kindred decide they love
each other. They decide to ignore the taboo of giving each other You keep looking. You know a friend of a friend
the Kiss. They know the dangers of the blood bond, but how of an acquaintance who swears their sire’s buddy
dangerous can mutual feelings be? talked to a guy who used the drug, but you’ve never
seen so much as an empty syrette. Every dead John
Is this love? You bet your fangs it is. This is love on the deep. and Jane you talk to rolls their eyes like you just
Beast and Curse be damned, love is the most wonderful feeling… asked them about Santa or true love. But when they
think you’re not looking, those black ice eyes melt
a little with longing. They all do. Everyone knows
that everyone knows. They’re all looking. They’re
asking for it by name.

“Solace.”
Say it out loud. It sounds like “soulless” on the
tongue. You don’t know if that’s a coincidence.

Chapter: Two The All Night Society 73

Lexicon
As with any subculture, Kindred have their own slang. Some coterie: A small group of allied Kindred.
of it’s almost antique, words the dead have preserved and
twisted. Some of it’s modern, developed in an age of industry covenant: A faction of Kindred who share certain political
and information. or theological beliefs. Some covenants are spread across the
world, but they tend to have independent leadership and local
Ancilla (an • SILL • uh): Kindred too old to be considered variations from domain to domain.
neonates, but not yet elders, whose Requiem has lasted roughly
50 to 150 years. The plural is ancillae (an • SILL • ae). Crúac (KREW • ack): The bloody, witchcraft-like magic
practiced by the Circle of the Crone.
ancient: The rare vampire who has existed for over a
millennium. Daeva (DAY • vuh) : A clan of vampires known for being
emotional, physically powerful, and desirable.
Avus (AY • vuss): A character’s “grandfather” or patron in
a bloodline from which she is not truly descended. Damned, the: The race of Kindred; vampires.

barrens: Portions of the city unfit for hunting. Typically, The Danse Macabre: The interweaving Requiems of all
places people don’t go after dark, or which are monitored vampires. Often used to describe the web of politics and conflict
closely by the police. that those Requiems create.

The Beast: The inchoate urges that drive vampires away diablerie (dee • AHB • ler • ee): Kindred “cannibalism”;
from the Man. draining another vampire of not only his blood but his soul.
Sometimes called Amaranth.
blood bond: The artificial love and loyalty spawned by
feeding from the same vampire three times. Also known more Disciplines: The preternatural abilities and edges the
formally as a Vinculum. Kindred possess, allowing them to vanish, turn into animals,
and perform myriad other inhuman feats.
bloodline: A group of vampires that splits off from a parent
clan to form a distinct lineage of its own. Some bloodlines do domain: A Kindred territory, usually with a single governing
not differ from the parent clan in significant ways, while others authority. Most frequently used to refer to a Kindred city-state,
claim different powers or weaknesses. or districts of one. The largest domains stretch across multiple
mortal cities.
blood sympathy: The mystic link between “related” vampires.
draugr: A vampire who has lost touch with humanity,
The Camarilla (CAM • er • ill • uh): The earliest becoming either a mindless beast or a completely uncaring
commonly believed-in Kindred state to stretch across vast areas predator.
of the world. The Camarilla governed during approximately the
same span of time, and over approximately the same parts of elder: A vampire who has survived for over 150 years; also
the world, as the mortal Roman republic and empire. a term of respect.

The Carthian Movement (KAR • thee • enn movement): Elysium (ell • ISS • ee • um): A location used for Kindred
A group of vampiric idealists, who believe in reconciling the gatherings and declared a neutral, “no violence” sanctuary by
Requiem with the political ideas of modern mortals. the authorities of a domain.

Carthian Law (KAR • thee • enn law): The strange ability The Embrace: The act of turning a mortal into a vampire.
of the Carthian Movement to back up Kindred law with mystic
force. Final Death: A Kindred’s real, true, ultimate death; when
her Requiem ceases and she never again rises as a vampire.
childe (CHILD): Kindred “offspring”; also used to refer
to particularly young neonates, or as a minor insult (akin to fledgling: A neonate; a newly created vampire under his
calling someone a “kid” in mortal circles). The plural is childer sire’s protection.
(CHILL • der).
frenzy: A berserk state in which the Beast takes total control
Circle of the Crone: A covenant of ritualistic Kindred who over a vampire. Rage, fear and hunger can induce frenzies; when
revere pagan gods, spirits, pantheons and/or progenitors. precision is needed, the term is qualified by cause

cloister: A city or other large domain that’s “gone dark,” where (rage frenzy, fear frenzy or hunger frenzy). Unqualified, the
Kindred can’t (or won’t) communicate in or out. term generally indicates rage frenzy.

Coils of the Dragon: A mystic way of learning that allows Gangrel (GANG • grell): A clan of vampires known for
vampires to avoid or exploit aspects of their curse, as practiced being primal, hardy, and savage.
by the Ordo Dracul.
ghoul: A mortal fed Kindred Vitae and possessed of various
conclave: An organization of vampires that stretches supernatural abilities, though far weaker than most vampires.
across multiple cities, but is not a government in and of
itself. Sometimes, conclaves are groups of individual, like- haven: A vampire’s residence; where one finds sanctuary
minded Kindred. Other times, they are made up of official from the sun.
representatives of multiple domains.
herd: A collection of mortals from whom a vampire feeds
regularly.

74 Vampire: the Requiem

Invictus (in • VICK • tuss): A covenant of vampires who are perversion: The act of two Kindred drinking each other’s
determined to protect the Masquerade, while at the same time blood.
enjoying their Requiems as the elite among the dead.
The Rack: The best parts of the city in which to find food,
Kindred: The modern (and most frequent) term by which including nightclubs and other loud, crowded areas.
vampires refer to themselves and their race.
regnant: The Kindred who holds regency over a thrall; the
kine: A term for mortals; the phrase “Kindred and kine” dominant member of a Vinculum. Also called a domitor.
refers to everyone.
Requiem: The Kindred condition; the whole miserable,
Kiss: The act of biting and taking blood from a mortal, as cursed song of a vampire’s unlife, whether singularly or
well as the pleasure it provides both participants. metaphorically.

Lancea et Sanctum (LAN • kay • uh ET SANK • toom): revenant: A vampire “born” from a spontaneous Embrace. Usually
A covenant of vampires who honor the Roman centurion a victim of a vampire who, for unknown reasons, rises after death.
Longinus, whom they have adopted as a form of “patron saint”
for the act of testing Christ’s divinity. VII (SEVEN): Apparently a clan, covenant, or other group
of vampires that detests the Kindred and seeks to destroy them,
Lick: A faintly vulgar term for a vampire. its own members excepted.

Man, the: The vampire’s human impulses and self-control. sire: A vampiric “parent,” one who has Embraced a childe;
Used to compliment or contrast the Beast. alternatively, a verb, meaning “to Embrace.”

The Masquerade: The efforts required to hide Kindred from Theban (THEE • ben) Sorcery: A mysterious form of
the mortal world. blood magic practiced primarily by members of the Lancea et
Sanctum.
Mekhet (MEK • et): A clan of vampires known for being
quick, discreet, and wise. thrall: One who is bound to a regnant; the member of a
Vinculum who feels artificial devotion to another.
mortal: An ordinary human. Although Kindred are, to
varying degrees, aware of other monsters in the World of torpor: A death-like sleep into which Kindred fall if they are
Darkness, they frequently use “mortal” to describe everyone injured severely or starved for too long. Kindred can also enter
who’s not one of them. torpor willingly to escape the world for a time.

neonate (NEE • oh • nate): A young vampire, engaged in Traditions: The three primary Kindred laws, passed down
his Requiem for less than 50 years. through the ages and rooted in the Kindred condition.

Nosferatu (noss • fur • AH • too): A vampire clan known unaligned: A vampire who claims membership in no
for being stealthy, strong and terrifying. covenant. Also known as an unbound or independent Kindred.

Ordo Dracul (OR • dough drah • KOOL): A covenant of Ventrue (VENN • true): A clan of vampires known for being
vampires known for its mystic studies and desire to transcend regal, commanding, and aristocratic.
the vampiric curse.
vessel: Any source of blood for the Kindred to feed on; usually
poacher: One who feeds in another Kindred’s territory but not always used to refer to a mortal.
without permission.
Vitae (VIE • tay): The blood of a vampire.

Chapter: Two The All Night Society 75

PART III

Thao

“Edie, what am I looking at?”
“Um, my living room?”
“I know it’s your living room, you cunt. But when I visit your subdivision cathouse on a
Friday night, there are some things that I should be seeing. Like, for example, everything
you’re supposed to be selling me. And I am sure you didn’ t misplace it.”
“Thao, you can’ t get mad at me! It wasn’ t my fault this time!”
“Wasn’ t your fault that you gave it away already? Party favors at your last ‘sleepover,’
maybe?”
“I didn’ t give it away, we just…didn’ t take it.”
“You what.” I actually needed to take a real breath. Flush with someone else’s life, I
steadied out and didn’ t kill my stupid sister. “Look, you know how this works. You and your
little band of g ypsies steal something of value, then you give it to me, and I sell it to pay
off Dad and keep him from looking too hard at your bleeder harem upstairs. Because I am
beneficent and you don’ t know how to talk to people. I swear, it’s like you think you can
just do whatever you want now that you’re already dead.”

LXXVI

Tuesday

“You are such a bitch. Why can’ t you just spot me this time? We couldn’ t take it; it was
way too risky.”

“”Hey, you want to take on the big bad world all by yourself? Go ahead. I could have
bought my way into the actual city with how much I’ve put down to fix your personal
problems. See how well you do lurching around out here in the suburbs with no one to
protect you.” And I walked out the door. And I felt free for the first time in thirty years.

But I only made it as far as the stairs.
“Thao, we couldn’ t take it because it was Dad’s.”
A chill ran right up my spine, and I rolled my eyes rather than let her see me shiver.
“What do you mean it was Dad’s? Weed is a little déclassé for his friends.”
“It wasn’ t weed, and every body I buried in the desert smelled just like us.”
“I have to go.”
“Thao, wait! We can handle this, but I need you…” I slammed the door in her face. “To
listen to me.” I heard her whisper on the other side. And then I walked away.

LXXVII



When I become death, death is the seed from which I grow.

William S. Burroughs

Vampire: The Requiem is about the thrilling fantasy of being a vampire, combined with the depth and drama that comes
from exploring how scary vampires are. In this chapter, we explore creating your own vampire persona, as well as introduce the
many dread powers of the Damned.

Ready to join us in the neon night?

Character Creation
With this system, we take a raw idea for a character, and turn Aspirations are one of the most important ways you can earn
her into one of the Kindred, defining her traits according to Beats and Experiences, which advance your character. More
the game’s rules. In the end, we’ll know who she is, and what importantly, they’re clear statements to your Storyteller about
she’s capable of. Then, we can explore her Requiem. Take a the types of things you wish to see happen to your character.
look at character sheet in the back of this book. It’s your map It’s important the Storyteller takes note of all the troupe’s
to exploring your Vampire character. Aspirations. This way, she can add hooks in the chronicle to
touch on something for everyone.

Step One: Character Concept Also, starting Aspirations are a great way to establish coterie
At this first stage, come up with a rough idea of who you want relationships. For example, if a coterie consists of two Invictus
to play. Who was she in life? What kind of vampire is she? Don’t characters, one may have the Aspiration, “Become a member
worry too much about things like clan and covenant at this of the Inner Circle,” and another might have, “Become knight
step. Instead, try to filter down the idea of your character into to a ranking Invictus.” This helps to put coterie dynamics into
a single statement. “Playboy with a jealous streak” is a concept. a loose perspective, and can help chronicle momentum start
“Street poet” could be another. It doesn’t need to be complex, strong.
just a solid, archetypical idea. Think of how you’d describe your
favorite character from a book or movie to a friend if you only Lastly, Aspirations make for great fodder for quick and easy
had a couple of seconds to do it. That’s a concept. goals. Don’t be afraid to take at least one Aspiration without
immense challenge or risk. For example, “Find a safe haven” isn’t
As you go through the process of character creation, if ever an unreasonable goal, and it gives you something to do during
you run into hurdles or hard choices, you can always go back to the first session if you’re struggling to find a place for your
your concept, and take the path that fits closer. For our example character. Look at easy Aspirations as story hooks. In play, try
above, if you’re hard-pressed for Merit choices, you might take to involve the other players’ characters in accomplishing them.
Resources, Striking Looks, Enticing, or even Street Fighting.
Those all evoke the feeling set forth by the concept. If you’re struggling with Aspirations, revisit this stage once
you’ve fleshed out the character some more. Often, one part
As well, choose three Aspirations. When choosing your of the character creation process will stand out for a given
character’s Aspirations, choose one or two that reflect her character. These stand-out parts will help you determine goals.
Kindred existence. Does she want to become a leader in her
city? Does he want to find a candidate for the Embrace? As well, Step Two: Select Attributes
choose at least one Aspiration pertaining to his associations Now, we step into the most basic traits that define the
with the mortal world. Does he have a former boyfriend he’s character’s capability. Attributes tell us how strong, how smart,
trying to keep safe and away? Does she have a mother with how charismatic she is. Look to the three categories (Mental,
mounting medical bills she’s helping? Physical, Social), and prioritize which you think is most

Chapter Three: Laws of the Dead 79

important for your character. Then, determine which is second the five clans, the Daeva, Gangrel, Mekhet, Nosferatu, and
most. When selecting Attributes, consider why your character’s Ventrue, starting on p. 103.
sire might have Embraced him. What drew the sire’s attention?
Where was he exceptional? Clan is more archetype than personality. While the
Disciplines and banes of the various clans may influence
In your primary category, place five dots and split them behavior, any person could be Embraced into any clan.
between the Attributes. In your secondary, place four. In your There’s something to be said for playing into stereotypes, but
tertiary, place three. challenging established norms can be very fulfilling.

As you’ll see on your character sheet, your character gets one Your choice of clan determines the Disciplines with which
free dot in each Attribute. A single dot represents a deficient your character has an affinity. As well, every clan has two
Attribute, something below average. Two dots represents the favored Attributes. Take an additional dot in one of these. This
average of human ability. Three dots is above average, highly can only take an Attribute to five dots.
competent. Four dots is a remarkable specimen, a rarity. Five
dots is the pinnacle of human capability. Clan Favored Attributes
Daeva Dexterity or Manipulation
Step Three: Select Skills
Next, you’ll select your character’s Skills. These have the Gangrel Composure or Stamina
same categories: Mental, Physical, and Social. Similarly, you’ll Mekhet Intelligence or Wits
prioritize these three categories. Skills do not receive free dots. Nosferatu Composure or Strength
Your primary category gets eleven dots. Your secondary gets
seven. Your tertiary gets four. Ventrue Presence or Resolve

When choosing Skills, think about your character’s Covenant
background. Does your socialite have three dots of Crafts Covenants are Kindred social orders. While your character’s sire
because she spent a lot of time in her father’s custom car shop? may influence her covenant choice, ultimately the choice is hers.
Does your gangster have two dots of Socialize because he had Also, it may change with time. You may choose to start play without a
to navigate the cliques of a private school as a child? covenant. Kindred without covenants are often seen as untrustworthy,
but they have more freedom to negotiate their own alliances.
Step Four: Skill Specialties
Skill dots represent training and experience with a broad Covenants offer certain advantages to their members. In
range of techniques and procedures. Skill Specialties allow order to purchase these advantages, your character must have
you to refine a few Skills, and show where your character truly at least one dot in the Covenant Status Merit (see p. 113). The
shines. You define your own Skill Specialties. They reflect a covenant advantages are as follows.
narrow focus and expertise in a given Skill. For example, your
character may have an Intimidation Specialty in Interrogation, • The Carthians: Firebrands of the Carthian Movement may
or an Academics Specialty in History. purchase Carthian Law Merits (see p. 115).

Choose three Specialties. Again, use this as an opportunity to • The Circle of the Crone: Acolytes of the Circle may learn
better understand who your character is, and who she was prior to the Crúac Discipline (see p. 150).
the Embrace. A character with Empathy: Detecting Lies is wildly
different than one with Empathy: Consoling. Crafts: Traps says • The Invictus: Scions of the Invictus may purchase Oaths
something completely different from Crafts: Carpentry. (see p. 116).

In play, players will tend to solve problems with the Skills • The Lancea et Sanctum: Judges of the Lancea et Sanctum
their characters are Specialized in. The Storyteller should expect may study Theban Sorcery (see p. 150).
this and work with it.
• The Ordo Dracul: The Defiant of the Ordo Dracul may
Step Five: Add Kindred Template develop Coils and Scales of the Dragon (see p. 154).
We have the flesh and blood. Now, we add the fangs.
Masks and Dirges
Clan Choose a Mask and a Dirge for your character. Whereas a
A character’s clan is the lineage her sire Embraced her into. mortal character has a Virtue and a Vice, Kindred characters
This cannot change once play starts, but your character may have Masks and Dirges.
channel her lineage toward a bloodline (see p. 98). Look over
Kindred wear Masks in public. A Mask is the persona she
shows the prey. The Mask is the pretty lie, the identity that keeps
her walking among the flock as an insider, even though she’s
nothing of the sort. It reflects how she deals with human society.

The Dirge is who she is behind closed doors, and when
dealing with other Kindred. A Dirge is the harsh truth to which

80 Vampire: the Requiem

Mask and Dirge Archetypes learned it. Did she have a mentor? Did she steal the blood
of another clan?
Authoritarian Masochist
Child Monster If the character starts with Covenant Status in the Circle of
Competitor Nomad the Crone, Lancea et Sanctum, or Ordo Dracul, she may use
Conformist Nurturer this dot to begin play with Crúac, Theban Sorcery, or the Coils
Conspirator Perfectionist of the Dragon, respectively.
Courtesan Penitent
Cult Leader Questioner Blood Potency
Deviant Rebel Blood Potency is the Curse’s raw, unbridled power. It
Follower Scholar determines how much Vitae the Kindred may store, and how
Guru Social Chameleon rapidly she can expend it. It affects certain Discipline rolls, and
Idealist Spy most Discipline resistances.
Jester Survivor
Junkie Visionary All Kindred start play with a free dot of Blood Potency. You
Martyr may purchase one or two additional dots for five or ten of your
ten starting Merit points, respectively.

You can find more on Blood Potency on p. 89.

she clings. It’s the grounding point to which she always returns. Step Six: Merits
When she walks the halls of Elysium, and works within her Choose ten dots’ worth of Merits. Kindred may also possess
covenant, she presents her Dirge. any of the Merits from The World of Darkness Rulebook
or The God-Machine Chronicle, except for those on the
For each of these traits, choose an archetype. This is a simple Supernatural Merits list, and both Vice-Ridden and Virtuous
statement of identity. We’ve provided a sample list you can (since Kindred do not have Virtue and Vice traits). As well, we’ve
choose from, or you may craft your own. provided an extensive list of Kindred-specific Merits on p. 109.

You can find more on Masks and Dirges on p. 84. Step Seven: Determine Advantages
Use the following rules to generate Advantages.
Touchstone
Your character’s Touchstone is a person, place, or thing that Willpower
reminds her of her humanity, and helps keep her grounded. Willpower is essential in the Danse Macabre. It keeps the
You’ll need to name a Touchstone, and write it next to your Beast at bay, and can fuel certain advantages. A vampire’s
sixth Humanity dot. See p. 87 for more on Touchstones. If Willpower score is equal to her Resolve + Composure dots.
you choose to take the Touchstone Merit, you may start with
additional Touchstones at lower levels of Humanity.

Disciplines Humanity
Disciplines are extensions of the Blood. They are ways the A vampire’s Humanity score represents his ability to
Beast’s tendrils creep out into the world to manipulate, to understand humankind, and reconcile his existence with it.
pervert, and to destroy. These unholy tricks can accomplish Humanity begins at seven dots.
nefarious and terrifying things, from changing the vampire into
an animal to forcing a victim into an artificial love. Others
A vampire’s Defense score is equal to the least of her Wits or
Choose three dots in Disciplines. At least two must be Dexterity Attributes, with her Athletics Skill added. Size is 5.
from the vampire’s in-clan Disciplines. The third dot may Health is equal to your character’s Size + Stamina + Resilience.
be from any Discipline. If you choose a third Discipline dot Speed is Size + Strength + Dexterity.
from a non-clan Discipline, consider how your character

Chapter Three: Laws of the Dead 81

Vampire Creation Quick Reference

Here are the very basics for creating a Vampire character.

Step One: Concept

Choose a concept. Come up with three Aspirations.

Step Two: Attributes

Prioritize categories. They receive 5/4/3 dots, distributed in any combination.

Step Three: Skills

Prioritize categories. They receive 11/7/4 dots, distributed however.

Step Four: Skill Specialties
Choose three Skill Specialties.

Step Five: Add Kindred Traits

Choose clan, covenant, Dirge, Mask, Touchstone, Blood Potency, and Disciplines.

Step Six: Add Merits
Select ten dots of Merits.

Step Seven: Advantages

Willpower is equal to Resolve + Composure. Humanity is 7. Size is 5. Health is Size + Stamina + Resilience.
Speed is Size + Strength + Dexterity + Vigor. Defense is the lower of Dexterity and Wits, plus Athletics.

Initiative Modifier is Dexterity + Composure.

Experienced Kindred Daeva Disciplines: Celerity, Majesty, Vigor
Storytellers may choose to allow players to make Gangrel: Primal, hardy, feral.
more experienced characters to start play. These bonus Gangrel Disciplines: Animalism, Protean, Resilience
Experiences allow characters to start beyond that level. Mekhet: Quiet, cunning, knowing.
Mekhet Disciplines: Auspex, Celerity, Obfuscate
Rank Bonus Experiences Nosferatu: Unsettling, mysterious, fearsome.
Nosferatu Disciplines: Nightmare, Obfuscate, Vigor
Around the block 5 Ventrue: Unflappable, domineering, confident.
Ventrue Disciplines: Animalism, Dominate, Resilience
Rising star 10

Ancilla 15

Rank elder 25

Mover and shaker 35 Covenant
Urban Legend 50 Choose a covenant to which your character claims
Methuselah 100 membership.

Kindred Template The Carthian Movement applies mortal solutions
to immortal problems with modern and experimental
Clan government.
Choose the clan to which your vampire belongs.
Daeva: Hungry, passionate, seductive. The Circle of the Crone venerates female divinity, painful
change, and the old ways remixed for the modern world.

The Invictus safeguards the Masquerade with hierarchy
and tradition.

82 Vampire: the Requiem

Vampire Creation Quick Reference (continued)

The Lancea et Sanctum preaches a dark faith; they are Resilience: Immense toughness.
both wolves and shepherds.
Theban Sorcery: The dark miracles of the Lancea et
The Ordo Dracul struggles to transcend the Curses Sanctum.
through eldritch alchemies and rites.
Vigor: Inhuman strength.

Blood Potency Experience Costs
Blood Potency starts at 1 dot. Additional dots may be Attribute: 4 Experiences per dot
purchased with five Merit points each. A maximum of Merit: 1 Experience per dot
two dots may be purchased in this way. Skill Specialty: 1 Experience
Skill: 2 Experiences per dot
Disciplines Clan Discipline: 3 Experiences per dot
Animalism: The ability to communicate with and Out-of-Clan Discipline: 4 Experiences per dot
command animals. Each character starts with three dots Coil of the Dragon, within chosen Mystery: 3
of Disciplines, at least two of which must be in clan. Experiences per dot

Auspex: Forbidden understanding and senses. Coil of the Dragon, outside chosen Mystery: 4
Celerity: Impossible speed. Experiences per dot
Coils of the Dragon: Secrets that transcend the Curse.
Crúac: The terrifying rituals of the Circle of the Crone. Crúac: 4 Experiences per dot
Dominate: The ability to control the mind. Theban Sorcery: 4 Experiences per dot
Majesty: The power to command trust and adoration. Blood Sorcery Ritual: 2 Experiences
Nightmare: The power to harness terror. Scale of the Dragon: 2 Experiences
Obfuscate: Powers of stealth and distraction. Humanity: 2 Experiences per dot
Protean: The power to change shape. Blood Potency: 5 Experiences per dot
Lost Willpower dot: 1 Experience

Experience
A player earns Beats for his character in many ways (listed • If your character takes lethal damage in one of her rightmost
below). When your character has gained five Beats, they Health boxes, take a Beat. Vampires do not gain Beats from
convert to one Experience, which can be used to develop your bashing damage.
character’s abilities.
• At the end of any game session, take a Beat.

Beats • Any time your character risks detachment (see p. 107), take
a Beat.

You gain Beats when your character fulfills one of the criteria Disciplines
below. Learning a Discipline takes Experiences. An in-clan
• If your character fulfills an Aspiration, take a Beat. At the Discipline dot costs three Experiences. Any other Discipline
or blood sorcery costs four. As well, Disciplines sometimes
end of the game session, replace the Aspiration. require teachers. Kindred may develop their clan Disciplines
without a teacher. Also, any Kindred may develop Animalism,
• Each Condition has criteria for resolution. When resolving Celerity, Obfuscate, Resilience, and Vigor independently. When
a Condition, take a Beat. learned out-of-clan, Auspex, Dominate, Majesty, Nightmare,
and Protean require teachers, as they are tied deeply to the
• Some Conditions provide Beats for actions other than blood of the clans. Not only do they require teachers, but they
resolution. require blood from a vampire with the Discipline in question.

• Any time you fail a roll, you may opt to make it a dramatic
failure and take a Beat.

Chapter Three: Laws of the Dead 83

It doesn’t have to be blood from a clan with affinity for that thickens faster, though, so you can increase your character’s Blood
Discipline; any vampire who possesses the Discipline at a higher Potency before then with Experiences. Five Experiences purchase a
level than the vampire who’s learning will do. This Vitae carries single dot of Blood Potency. You can read more on Blood Potency on
the normal risks. p. 89. This includes how vampires might increase their Potency dots.

Coils of the Dragon, Crúac, and Theban Sorcery require Devotions
teachers. They do not, however, require the student to imbibe Devotions each have an associated Experience cost. A new
Vitae. Kindred may not learn the signature Disciplines of Devotion usually costs one Experience per dot in the Devotion,
bloodlines, even through diablerie. halved and rounded down For example, Subsume the Lesser
Beast, which requires Animalism •••• and Dominate ••, costs
Blood Potency three Experiences. All Devotions cost at least one Experience.
After approximately every 50 years that a vampire is active, her Particularly specialized Devotions may cost a point less, while
Blood Potency will increase on its own. Some vampires’ blood wildly versatile Devotions cost an extra Experience.  

The Heart of the Beast
Kindred traverse a long path for what could be eternity. Any time a vampire overcomes a small hurdle in defense of
Sometimes, they move at a crawl, with stagnation and her Mask, she gains a point of Willpower. When committing
inevitability weighing on their every step. Sometimes, they atrocious or existentially risky acts in defense of her Mask, she
sprint at a fever pitch, confused and confusing. But Kindred regains all her spent Willpower points.
never walk this path alone. They walk with their Beasts, and
with the Beast comes the hunger. Dirge

Anchors The Dirge is the truth behind the lies. It’s the vampire’s secret
Kindred are unnatural. Each vampire has three anchors that self; it’s who he is when the lights are off and nobody is present
ground her in the reality of the World of Darkness. In addition to witness his dirtiest moments. It’s his dark indulgence. It’s
to helping define her existence, anchors serve as a source of the self-loathing she will never admit. It’s his desire for an end.
Willpower. Kindred do not cling to the mortal concepts of It’s her need for companionship.
Virtue and Vice, as their very existence is mortal sin. Their
Masks, Dirges, and Touchstones fill that void. A Dirge gives the Kindred a sense of identity. After all, her very
existence is a lie. In the Danse Macabre, truth is rarely more than a
Each anchor has two conditions that give Willpower recovery. pipe dream. For most vampires, honesty only exists within oneself.
The easier recovers a single Willpower point. The harsher Defending that internal honesty helps her to maintain perspective.
refreshes all Willpower. A character may only refresh all her
Willpower using an anchor once per chapter. For the single Any time a vampire withdraws from his outside life in
Willpower point option, err on the side of allowing the point. defense of his truer self, he gains a point of Willpower. When
For the full refresh, use risk of Final Death, breaking points, committing terrible, damning acts in defense of his personal
and markedly dramatic scenes as benchmarks for qualifying identity, he regains all his spent Willpower points.
moments.
Mask and Dirge Archetypes
Like Aspirations, anchors are not supernatural traits. They’re Here are numerous sample archetypes for your characters’
a narrative mechanic that helps us portray Kindred psychology. Masks and Dirges. Feel free to pull from this list, or come up
with your own. Each includes a brief description, and sample
Mask actions that could recover Willpower for each.
Mask is the bearing Kindred present to the world. It’s the
façade, the pretty lie. It’s the excuse for why he can’t stay for Note that the risks and costs listed should always be
breakfast in the morning. It’s the reason she gives the cab driver meaningful. They should have value in the story, to count as
for dropping her off near an abandoned warehouse at odd hours Willpower conditions.
of the night. It’s his excuse for barely touching his dinner.
Authoritarian
The First Tradition reads: “Do not reveal your nature to those An authoritarian must be on top. She prides herself not in
not of the Blood. Doing so forfeits your claim to the Blood.” competition, but in control. She must assert her superiority and
Kindred take this concept seriously, and extend it beyond the dominance whenever possible.
purview of their unnatural existences. Revealing oneself is a form
of vulnerability. Vulnerability is a quick route to Final Death. Single Willpower: Shut down an inferior trying to rise to
your level of power.

84 Vampire: the Requiem

All Willpower: Commit a widespread hit against a rival’s
mortal connections.

Child
A child isn’t necessarily a child in age, but in behavior. He
looks for others to care for him, and always stands behind
someone else. He’ll always diffuse responsibility.

Single Willpower: Find someone to take responsibility for
your mistake.

All Willpower: Commit a terrible crime to see how authority
might react.

Competitor
The competitor relishes engagement and trial. She must test
herself against others in all things. She’s never comfortable not
knowing if she’s capable or not.

Single Willpower: Challenge someone clearly your superior.
All Willpower: Risk Final Death to prove that you can
handle something.

Conformist
A conformist needs structure. He can be on top of it, or on
the bottom of it, but he must adhere to some external concept
and hierarchy in order to feel complete.

Single Willpower: Choose an obviously disadvantageous
path, because it fits with protocol.

All Willpower: Stand by the losing side with shield at the
ready, because it’s your side.

Conspirator
A conspirator must involve herself deeply in all things. She
must have layers of machination for even the most meaningless
tasks.

Single Willpower: Add a layer of meaningless complexity
to a plan.

All Willpower: Refuse to take an action in self-defense
without excessive, dangerous plotting.

Courtesan
A courtesan exists to see others enjoy themselves. He revels
not for himself, but to let others bask in his revelry. He’s a
master of the art of enjoyment.

Single Willpower: Put yourself out for another’s pleasure.
All Willpower: Be the last one dancing when the party’s
on fire.

Cult Leader
A cult leader wants for faith and devotion. He may have faith
and devotion of his own, but he wants for a group to adore him
and his word above all. This may or may not be a religious cult.

Chapter Three: Laws of the Dead 85

Single Willpower: Convince someone to deny logic because Junkie
of your word. A junkie puts indulgence before anything else. He can forget
the rest of the world exists while he’s on his favored high.
All Willpower: Risk exile or death to defend your cult’s
belief system. Single Willpower: Ignore a problem or responsibility in favor
of immediate gratification.
Deviant
A deviant lives to flout norms and break traditional All Willpower: Abandon an important relationship over
expectations. She isn’t concerned with rebellion; she’s your pursuit of pleasure.
concerned with crime, sin, and debauchery.
Martyr
Single Willpower: Commit a crime against your recognized A martyr puts others before herself in all things. She’s
society. concerned with community and the cause, over her own safety
and reputation.
All Willpower: Commit a high crime in plain view of an
authority. Single Willpower: Take another’s burden upon yourself
without expecting recompense.
Follower
A follower needs direction, and is loathe to come up with it All Willpower: Put yourself at risk to save someone else or
on his own. He devotes much of his attention to finding the an ideology.
right person to offer that direction.
Masochist
Single Willpower: Follow a directive blindly, for the sake A masochist savors suffering. To a masochist, living without
of following. pain is not living. He never runs from a chance to experience
new tortures.
All Willpower: Follow a dangerous directive without
hesitation. Single Willpower: Find and experience a new source of hurt.
All Willpower: Willingly explore pain, beyond the point of
Guru safety and reason.
A guru lives to learn, and to impart that knowledge to others.
She’s a repository and font of wisdom on every topic she can Monster
manage to study. A monster exists to torment, frighten, and destroy. She
loathes existence, and spreads that loathing wherever she goes.
Single Willpower: Give advice that someone uses to succeed.
All Willpower: Give protected, dangerous information Single Willpower: Cause pain for the sole intention of
without asking for payment. causing pain.

Idealist All Willpower: Commit a capital crime without additional
An idealist sees a better future, and all things exist within motive.
the context of that eventuality. He never accepts compromise,
only recognizing a perfect achievement of his goal. Nomad
A nomad cannot stand staying still. Stagnancy is worse than
Single Willpower: Deny a compromise that would water death to the true wanderer. He sheds homes the way some shed
down your ideal. clothing.

All Willpower: Refuse safety for fear of abandoning your Single Willpower: Abandon a home.
ideal’s purity. All Willpower: Abandon a society, organization, or city.

Jester Nurturer
A jester never takes the world seriously. She looks for the A nurturer cares for others, and tries to bolster them to
absurd in everything, and shows it to the world. Everything is comfort and greatness. He protects and fosters, measuring his
a joke. Everything has fault. success by the success of others.

Single Willpower: Point out an absurdity in the current state Single Willpower: Put yourself out to help another succeed.
of affairs, to lighten the tone. All Willpower: Take full responsibility for another’s
dangerous mistake.
All Willpower: Favor wit and cunning over direct self-defense
in a situation of serious danger.

86 Vampire: the Requiem

Perfectionist Spy
A perfectionist never settles for success; nothing short of A spy infiltrates, and uncovers intelligence that others wish
flawless accomplishment is enough. She revisits and tinkers to keep hidden. She does whatever the situation demands in
with any minor imperfections, to the point of excess. order to uncover hidden truths.

Single Willpower: Revisit an already successful action to Single Willpower: Build a new identity or uncover a secret.
hammer out a flaw. All Willpower: Uncover a damning secret that could end
someone.
All Willpower: Stick with a failed and dangerous plan, in
order to fix what went wrong. Survivor
A survivor favors his own existence above all things. He
Penitent puts safety and stability as the primary drive of most actions.
A penitent embodies regret and lessons learned. He cannot To succeed is to live.
make a mistake and allow it to go unpunished. The only sin is
to mistake without learning. Single Willpower: Favor the safe path over the higher risk,
higher reward path.
Single Willpower: Punish yourself for a mistake.
All Willpower: Risk death to correct an egregious error in All Willpower: Abandon a social group or relationship in
judgment. order to stay safe.

Questioner Visionary
A questioner cannot accept anything at face value. She must A visionary has a clear picture in his head. This picture is of
poke and prod, finding the holes in logic and function. She something bigger, something greater. It’s his life’s work to show
asks the questions that everyone else wants to ask. that vision to the world.

Single Willpower: Challenge an accepted truth. Single Willpower: Help someone by sharing your vision
All Willpower: Put a long-believed truth to the test, at your with them.
own peril.
All Willpower: Put yourself at risk to show a group the power
Rebel of your vision.
A rebel refuses to accept tradition, mores, and folkways just
on account of their existence. He fights to break new ground Touchstone
and pave his own way. A Touchstone is part of the mortal world, usually a living,
breathing person. Rarely, it can be a place or thing. The
Single Willpower: Openly flout a tradition. Touchstone tests a vampire’s Requiem; and by her very
All Willpower: Openly flout a Kindred Tradition, or a existence, she asks challenging questions of the Kindred. She
covenant taboo. tests his values, his priorities, and his true nature. She touches
his Requiem in a fundamentally positive way, even though her
Scholar association might cause complications and tribulations for the
A scholar must study, and must learn. She’s never satisfied vampire.
with base explanation; she must always dig deeper and uncover
the truths behind the truths. For young Kindred, the Touchstone is usually someone he
knew in life. She may be a family member, confidante, lover,
Single Willpower: Uncover a lost piece of information. or even a rival. She’s someone who reminds him of what he
All Willpower: Uncover forbidden knowledge. was when he was alive.

Social Chameleon For older Kindred, the Touchstone is usually tied to his less
A social chameleon blends with his surroundings, and fits savory affairs. She may be the daughter of his prized ghoul,
in wherever he may go. He considers no group to be exclusive. someone who looks like his long-dead wife, or the janitor he
passes by every morning on his way to sleep. She’s someone
Single Willpower: Ingratiate yourself to a new social clique. who reminds him that once, he was alive.
All Willpower: Burn an important bridge to guarantee
acceptance in a new group. Touchstones provide built-in conflict for every character.
When thinking of a Touchstone, consider how your character

Chapter Three: Laws of the Dead 87

might potentially lose it. Think of how he protects it. Think Replacing Touchstones
of how he reacts when it’s threatened.
Touchstones don’t come easy. While you can
In game terms, Touchstones help a vampire maintain his — and must — replace a lost Touchstone within
Humanity by adding dice to detachment rolls. If a character one month, establishing those relationships can
has a single attached Touchstone, it adds a +2 die bonus to take longer. Close friends and confidants take
detachment rolls. With multiple Touchstones, add a +3 die cultivation. This is intended; it means most Kindred
bonus. See p. 108 for further details on detachment. When a must build and maintain relationships with mortals
vampire has no Touchstones, detachment rolls are made at a beyond just their handful of Touchstones.
–2 die penalty.
On the other hand, there exist Kindred who
Write Touchstones alongside your character’s Humanity don’t, but still get by. They do so by falling into fast
track. Write the first Touchstone next to the sixth Humanity friendships and deep flings. Sure, these relationships
dot. Consider a Touchstone attached when there is a dot end disastrously, but that’s all part of the drama. It
next to it. For example, with only four Humanity dots, your creates a tense cycle where the vampire is constantly
character’s initial Touchstone is no longer attached. Any time losing and finding new flings, throwing herself
the vampire defends her attachment to her Touchstone, she harder into each. The pursuit of this week’s best
regains a Willpower point. If this defense causes her serious friend becomes something of an addiction.
harm, she regains all her spent Willpower points.
things; at least that’s what you tell her. It’s nice to reminisce
If a vampire loses her last Touchstone — for example, if he about old times, but lately she’s been asking why you’re living
died — then she has two choices. She may immediately lose a dot in that shit hole on the south side, and why you don’t just come
of Humanity. If she takes that path, she has one month to find back to work with her.
a new Touchstone to replace him. If she does not within that
time, she gets the Languid Condition (see p. 304). Alternately, Friend With Benefits
she may take the Languid Condition immediately. The vampire You and he have a ritual. The Sunday game comes around,
doesn’t consciously choose the Condition, but she resigns you have a few cold ones, act like you’re still in college, he sucks
herself to the slowing of her blood. This applies whether or you off, then you suck him off. It’s a great arrangement, but he’s
not the Touchstone was attached at the time. been looking for outside entertainment. It’s not against the rules;
hell, you don’t have rules. But he’s just canceled for next Sunday.
Taking a new Touchstone requires the Touchstone Merit (see
p. 115). Write the new Touchstone in next to the appropriate Gravesite
Humanity level. Replacing a lost or dead Touchstone requires Since you’ve started the Danse, you stop by your gravesite
gaining a dot of Humanity. Replace the Touchstone on her every few nights on the way home. You’re in awe of your rival
Humanity track. predators; they feign mortality so well. But deep down, you
loathe the idea. You find the great lie abhorrent, and this little
Remember that additional Touchstones bought with the show of defiance helps you to keep perspective.
Touchstone Merit are subject to the Sanctity of Merits rule if
lost. (See p. 109.) High School Sweetheart
You and she fumbled around as teens. You learned a lot from
Example Touchstones one another; most importantly, you learned that you weren’t
Here are a number of example Touchstones. These are really compatible. After your Embrace, you looked back to
general, and most characters should be able to use at least some those moments that made you feel human. The awkward sex
of them with little modification. We encourage you to customize and failed communication did just that. Just hope her father
Touchstones. After all, they’re what anchors Kindred to their was bluffing when he threatened to kill you.
Humanity. They should feel real and human.
House of Birth
The Ex That old place. It’s passed hands five times since you were
Before the Embrace, you and he were a thing. It ended a born. Nobody loved that house for more than a couple of years
while ago, but early in your Requiem, you needed a quick and at a time. Now, it reminds you of those moments when mom
easy fix, so you keep coming back to him. The thing is, you just defended you from dad’s belt. You went to purchase it, but the
want a casual thing and some no-strings blood, but he’s looking city has it marked for demolition.
for something serious. He swears it’ll be different this time.

Former Partner
When you and she started your business, your heads were in
the clouds together. Now, you’ve moved on to bigger and better

88 Vampire: the Requiem

Intrepid Detective Victim’s Lover
When you disappeared, he just wouldn’t leave well enough You killed her. You lost control, and you snapped her neck. You’re
alone. He took one look at your case file, and found it fishy. It’s dealing with that. So was her wife. You’ve sworn to yourself that
been a few years, but it’s a pet project. It’s a white whale. Even you’d keep her wife safe. You’ve even chatted with her a few times.
though your family stopped looking, he hasn’t. He reminds you She seems pleasant. She seems like a good meal. But you can’t bring
that sometimes, people really do care. yourself to touch her in that way, after the way you hurt her before.

Murderer Witness
You were in the wrong place, at the wrong time, and she He watched in horror as you took your first life. You murdered in cold
killed you. She didn’t plan to, it just happened that way. She blood, and he’ll never forget that moment. Of course, the Masquerade
now spends out her days in the penitentiary. You visit every now says he can’t go telling everyone what he saw. Unfortunately, that meant
and again. You wear a disguise so she doesn’t know who you you had to intervene. But without mind control, your only chance
are. She keeps you grounded, since her life ended with yours. meant leveling with him and answering his questions.
But the warden’s talking about moving her to solitary.

One That Got Away Blood Potency
You meant to feed from him. Let’s be honest; you were Blood Potency reflects the power of the blood that pumps
probably going to kill him. But that car went down the wrong through a vampire’s dead heart. With time, with activity, and
alley at the right time, and he got away. In the moment, it pissed with diablerie, Kindred become stronger and more able to store
you off. But now, you see him as a reminder of what you are. stolen life within their corpses.
His life would have never been in danger if you didn’t exist. So
you follow him. But you feed first. In game terms, a higher Blood Potency score allows a vampire
to store more Vitae, spend more Vitae in a turn, and develop his
The Orphan Attribute and Skill traits to superhuman levels. All vampires begin
She was barely a teen, hanging out in between, just a part of the their Requiems at Blood Potency 1. You may purchase additional
scene. Her parents did every drug in the book, and rarely came Blood Potency dots at character creation, at the expense of five of
home. She was set for a terrible life, until you stumbled upon your Merit dots each. After play begins, Blood Potency increases
her. Now, you help keep her warm. You put her up. You make through three methods: Experiences (five Experiences buy one
sure she gets up for school right before you collapse for the day. dot of Blood Potency), through dangerous and illegal diablerie,
or the passage of time. Every 50 years a vampire remains awake
Spouse and active, she gains a dot of Blood Potency.
You could have left him when you were Embraced. You should
have. But you loved him so much, and you couldn’t imagine As Blood Potency increases, so does the relative difficulty
existence without him. That’s a problem. He’s getting a few of a vampire’s Requiem. Namely, her feeding becomes more
years on him, and he’s starting to ask questions. You wouldn’t difficult. At the Embrace, she can feed from anything with
wish the Embrace on your enemies, let alone your soulmate. blood, including animals. Once she reaches the third dot of
Blood Potency, animals no longer sustain her. At six dots of
Terminal Parent Blood Potency, she can only gain nourishment from the blood
Mom should have quit smoking thirty years ago. She knew of the unnatural. Usually, this means other vampires (some
that, but it never mattered. She kept it up, and now she breathes Kindred can feed from other creatures, with the Unnatural
through a machine. Dad died of the same thing a few years back, Affinity Merit, see p. 114). If a vampire feeds from something
now she’s your only remaining family. Her condition’s getting beneath her Blood Potency restriction, she must spend a point
worse, the doctors give her a few months at most. You do have of Willpower for every Vitae she wishes to consume.
ways you could preserve her, though.
Additionally, Blood Potency affects certain other aspects
Therapist of her existence. For example, her body’s response to sunlight
He was there to listen, for a couple hundred an hour. Now, depends on her Humanity and Blood Potency scores (see banes,
he’s there to listen because you confessed a little too much, and p. 101). As well, if she falls to torpor (see p. 105), her Blood
he’s utterly fascinated. He even keeps night hours, just for the Potency multiplies the amount of time she remains in slumber.
case of a lifetime. You need someone to talk to. He needs you
to sign this disclosure form. For every twenty-five years a vampire spends in torpor, she
loses a dot of Blood Potency. Many elders fall into voluntary
slumber in order to ease their feeding restrictions, or simply out
of boredom and melancholy. Some find a perverse excitement
in the prospect of waking to a whole new world. When her
Blood Potency falls below six dots, the vampire does not lose
any Attributes or Skills above the fifth dot.

Chapter Three: Laws of the Dead 89

Effects of Blood Potency masters of the Protean Discipline hone their claws and fangs
to such vicious ends; this breeds a healthy fear and respect of
Blood Attribute/ Max Can Feed clan Gangrel within most courts.
Potency Skill Vitae/ From
Maximum Per Turn Aggravated wounds look completely unnatural. They’re
perversions of nature that tax the Masquerade. Each vampire
05 Stamina/1 Animals wounds differently. Flesh may become brittle and burn like
paper. Tissue may bubble and stink. Blackened veins may
15 10/1 Animals streak across the victim’s body. Foamy pustules may taint the
area around the injury. Whatever the method, aggravated
25 11/2 Animals wounds appear as manifestations of the natural world violently
eliminating something that does not belong.
35 12/3 Humans
Torpor and Final Death
45 13/4 Humans Kindred have little to fear from bashing wounds. A vampire
remains conscious when her last box is full of bashing damage. She
55 15/5 Humans still suffers wound penalties. However, when her last box is marked
with lethal wounds, she falls to torpor (see p. 105). When her last
66 20/6 Kindred box is marked with aggravated damage, she suffers Final Death.
Within a minute, her body reverts to its true age. For younger
77 25/7 Kindred Kindred, this means decomposition, with a collapse of skeletal
structure and soft tissues turning to liquids, ash, and minerals. For
88 30/8 Kindred the oldest Kindred, this means a full disintegration into a pile of
dust and ash, with only the tiniest fragments of bone remaining.
99 50/10 Kindred

10 10 75/15 Kindred

Immortality, Injury, and Mortality Tricks of the Damned
Left to their own devices, Kindred persist eternally. Unfed, The Embrace comes with many drawbacks. However, it also
they’ll fall to torpor, but without outside intervention they comes with numerous advantages. Every vampire can use the
are unending. As well, vampires can easily withstand grievous following edges. Many of these advantages require Vitae. These
wounds that would easily kill even the hardiest of humans. expenditures are reflexive, and subject to the vampire’s Vitae
per turn limit as determined by her Blood Potency (see above).
Kindred take only bashing damage from many sources that
would normally cause lethal damage to humans. This includes Blush of Life
most non-supernatural weapons. A sword slices through a Normally, a vampire looks the part of a corpse. He’s pale. He
Kindred body the way it would a human; it’s just that vampires registers no pulse. He exists at slightly below room temperature.
don’t have the same need for stable flesh, working organs, and Food and drink taste terrible, and immediately cause violent, bloody
intact blood vessels. A mortal whose viscera splay across a city vomiting. However, with a bit of Vitae, he can fake life temporarily.
street is most certainly doomed, whereas a vampire recovers
after only minor inconvenience and a small investment of Vitae. By spending a point of Vitae, Kindred may invoke the blush
of life for a scene. This makes them functionally human. They
On Kindred bodies, bashing and lethal wounds look the way one become warm to the touch, with a full, hearty pulse. They
might imagine the same injuries to a corpse. Gashes, contusions, produce natural bodily fluids. They function sexually in the way
and lacerations all still happen, but bruises appear blacker and a human can, becoming physically aroused, erect, and lubricated.
blistered, cuts expose raw tissue but do not bleed. If the vampire They can keep food and drink down, ejecting it later in the night.
invokes the blush of life (below), she bruises and bleeds like the They’ll pass medical inspection while the blush remains active.
living. Note that even with the blush of life, bleeding does not
equate with a loss of Vitae. The lost blood is fully inert. Kindred Senses
Kindred exist in the dark. Not only can they see better than
Those few terrible things that cause aggravated wounds humans in the dark, their other senses are sharper to facilitate
to mortals cause only lethal harm to vampires. This mostly their predatory needs.
includes terrible harm from chemicals, certain supernatural
punishment, and the skills of utmost masters in certain fighting
styles meant to maximize debilitating bodily harm.

Few rare perversions of nature — D­ isciplines, Devotions,
and sorceries — cause aggravated wounds to Kindred. Some

90 Vampire: the Requiem

Kindred do not suffer normal vision penalties for being in the A Taste of Blood
dark, and can compensate with hearing. In full darkness, they
only suffer a –2 die penalty to rolls that require vision. If they In addition to being able to smell blood and
encounter traces of blood, even if dried or hidden (in a carpet, to identify and track with blood, Kindred discern
for example), they immediately see even very small quantities. subtle cues from blood they taste.

Vampire hearing becomes similarly enhanced. They can hear Dice Pool: Wits + Composure
heartbeats at three yards or meters per dot of Blood Potency. Upon Dramatic Failure: The Storyteller gives two
Embrace, a vampire’s sense of smell attunes to the scent of blood. true statements about the blood, and one very
A vampire can smell the presence of blood from about ten yards dangerous lie.
or meters per dot of Blood Potency without rolling. Multiply this Failure: The blood offers no insight.
range by her Auspex dots. If she’s tasted a particular human’s blood, Success: You can discern basic details from the
she can add her Blood Potency to any rolls to track him by scent. blood. These include blood type, clan, the presence
Kindred blood does not offer this advantage, since it’s mostly old, of popular drugs, how long the blood has been out
dead, and its smell is a blend of all the vampire’s recent victims. of the body, blood-borne diseases and poisons, if
you’ve tasted that person’s blood before, and if
If any of her Kindred senses apply, add her Blood Potency to the blood is human. It can also tell the number of
any rolls to detect hidden people or details by the traces of blood. steps removed a character is in blood sympathy to
another character who’s blood you’ve tasted (see
Physical Intensity Blood Sympathy, p. 98). If the donor is not human,
Vampire tales speak of creatures stronger and faster than your character detects what it is (if she’s tasted that
anything human. With Vitae, any Kindred can accomplish type of creature’s blood before).
massive bursts of physical prowess. By spending a point of Vitae, Exceptional Success: You can discern extensive
he may add two dice to rolls involving his choice of Strength, details from the blood. These include whether the
Dexterity, or Stamina for the turn. This does not increase blood is from a ghoul and to what clan, infections,
traits derived from these Attributes. However, it will increase what the vessel ate recently, hormones in the
relevant resistances. bloodstream, diseases, some causes of death, and
other fine details at Storyteller discretion.
Healing Suggested Modifiers: Auspex active (+2), blood-
Kindred blood seeks to return a vampire to the state of her tied (+2), currently hungry (+2), hour-old blood (−1),
Embrace. Her hair and fingernails regrow as she sleeps. More day-old blood (−3), week or more old (−5)
importantly, Vitae can force her injured body to reconstruct,
mending bones and knitting torn flesh in seconds. In dramatic herself from healing them and spending excessive Vitae. This cost
instances, severed limbs regenerate or even simply reattach (if is one Willpower per wound, and makes the wound permanent.
she’s able to heal the entire injury in a turn).
Sometimes, Kindred force other marks to remain. For
A single point of Vitae heals two points of bashing damage, or example, vampires often keep scars, tattoos, and piercings for
one point of lethal damage. A single aggravated wound requires spiritual reasons or just to fit in with the flock. Many Kindred
five Vitae and a full day’s sleep. Aggravated damage is the only remove long hair, in favor of wigs or cleaner, more modern
type of wound that leaves a scar on Kindred. The scar appears styles. The vampire spends Willpower to fight the healing
natural, unlike the original damage. process while she sleeps. After a day’s rest, any damage heals
as normal, but her body remains changed.
The Cleansing
While Kindred sleep, they return to the time of their Predatory Aura
Embrace. Anything that wouldn’t constitute a Health level of Every step she takes, every corner she turns, a Kindred’s
damage heals automatically and returns to its original state. Beast stands ready to face threats, to defend territory, and most
For this reason, many sires recommend their childer groom importantly, to feed. To the Beast, everything is a challenge, a
for the Embrace, as part of the ritual of entering the Danse. potential conquest, a meal, or a combination of the three. To
other predators, the Beast is a palpable thing, something that
If an injury would require Vitae to heal (represented by identifies another monster.
Health levels), the vampire will unconsciously heal it during
daysleep. Sometimes, this means the vampire will not have the This presence, the predatory aura, builds a paradox in
Vitae necessary to wake. As she falls to slumber, she may spend Kindred society. On one hand, it guarantees vampires will
Willpower points to “preserve” wounds through her rest, to keep never truly be civil, as all remain one misstep away from each
other’s throats. On the other hand, it forces Kindred to hold
tight to traditions and propriety, in order to keep the Beast at
bay and force a modicum of nicety.

Chapter Three: Laws of the Dead 91

Without a Discipline or other ability to mask or suppress the Others and the Predatory Aura
predatory aura, Kindred perceive other vampires as their own kind.
If they can smell the vampire, they know it’s a vampire. If they touch Other denizens of the World of Darkness may
a vampire, they know it’s a vampire. Note that this is one-sided: One have similar auras. Most well-known is the feral
character may not notice the other. It’s not just the aura, it’s all the mien of the werewolves. When Kindred notice
right cues. Kindred notice the shallow or nonexistent breathing werewolves, they feel physiological responses they
of their kind. They notice the subtle, predatory tones in a voice. never otherwise experience, such as goose pimples
They smell multiple victims’ blood on another. along their arms, and chills down their backs. They
feel the adrenaline surge in the pit of the stomach
Further, a vampire can voluntarily intensify her predatory that humans associate with danger and tense
aura to elicit a reaction. Against other Kindred, this escalates excitement.
the encounter, forcing fight or flight instincts. Against mortals,
this asserts power and cows the lesser creatures. Lashing out Other creatures in the World of Darkness may
with the Beast takes an instant action, and against Kindred exhibit predatory auras with Storyteller discretion.
costs a point of Willpower. It’s free to use against a mortal.
Predatory Aura Modifiers
The Bestial Triad
Every vampire can evoke three aspects of the Beast; the On your territory Feeding Ground dots
monstrous, the seductive, and the competitive. The aura chosen
reflects the way the vampire approaches the confrontation. It Hungry +1
also determines the Conditions given during the clash.
Starving +2
The Monstrous Beast: This represents the Beast-As-Destroyer.
Its every instinct is to rip asunder. The monstrous aura inspires Victim has been targeted by −1 (cumulative)
a witness to fight or flee. It evokes the most primitive survival predatory aura in the scene
instincts in its victims, and causes the Bestial Condition (p. 301).
Willpower if the responding character’s Blood Potency is lower
The Seductive Beast: This is the Beast-As-Tempter. It needs hot than that of the vampire who lashed out.
abandon, and a temporary escape from reality. It inspires the need
for immediate, throwaway coupling. It evokes the primal need for Roll an appropriate Power Attribute + Blood Potency to
instant gratification, and causes the Wanton Condition (p. 307). contest. This does not have to be the same aspect of the Beast.
For example, if a vampire confronts another with the seductive
The Competitive Beast: This is the Beast-As-Alpha. It needs to Beast, the opposition may opt to respond with greater implied
come out on top, to command, to control. It inspires power plays violence, and oppose with the monstrous Beast.
and dominance games. It evokes the need for a rigid hierarchy,
a food chain, and causes the Competitive Condition (p. 302). If the aggressor scores more successes, the victim gains the
Condition associated with the aggressor’s Beast. As well, the
Lashing Out aggressor gains a +2 die bonus on any rolls to pursue her aspect’s
To lash out, the vampire must take a simple action appropriate interests for the remainder of the scene.
to the aspect of predator used. A monstrous Beast growls,
threatens, gnashes teeth, or calls to action. A seductive Beast If the opposition scores more successes, he turns the
sidles up to the prey, whispers beautiful lies, or gives a telling confrontation on the aggressor. The opposition imposes the
gaze from across the crowd. A competitive Beast draws a line in Condition associated with his Beast, and gains a +2 die bonus
the sand, announces terms, or takes the role of mouse in a chase. on any rolls to pursue his Beast’s compulsions for the remainder
of the scene.
Roll Blood Potency, plus a Power Attribute. Use Strength
for monstrous, Presence for seductive, and Intelligence for Mortals can fight the Beast, but they cannot impose a
competitive. The modifiers below apply to all rolls for predatory Condition on the vampire. They do gain the +2 die bonus to
aura. Both sides may use whatever modifiers apply. Note that attack, flee, or otherwise neutralize the risk.
Disciplines do not add to predatory aura rolls unless specifically
mentioned. For example, Vigor does not add to the monstrous If both characters achieve the same number of successes, they
Beast, and Majesty does not add to the seductive Beast. both impose their Conditions, but neither gets the +2 die bonus.

The opposition has two choices; fight or flight. Flight: This represents a stark withdrawal. It costs nothing,
and allows for a reasonable out from the challenge. This usually
Fight: This represents a counter-challenge. One Beast flares, means a convenient escape or excuse to pull away. It typically
and is met with equal aggression. This requires a point of makes the character look inferior or foolish. The aggressor may
pursue. The victim gains the Condition associated with the
initiating vampire’s aspect of the Beast.

92 Vampire: the Requiem

The Cycle of Death
The Requiem is significantly different from mortal life.
From the moment of Embrace, everything takes on a new,
bloody tone that defies logic and reason. Certain phenomena
drive that home.

The Embrace
The Embrace is the process of becoming a vampire, and
entering the Requiem. On the surface, it’s quite easy. The
sire drains a mortal completely of his lifeblood, then feeds
him a bit of her own Vitae to rouse him back to the land
of the living.

It’s just two things:

Bite the mortal.

Feed his corpse.

It’s so simple. However, with all things in the Requiem,
it’s not always straightforward.

The act of the Embrace is a willful action; Vitae alone is not
enough to wake the victim, a sire must choose to commit the
Embrace. This choice comes at the price of a Humanity dot.
This means that the traditional Embrace is never accidental.

Posthumous Embraces
While yes, an Embrace requires the mortal be contaminated
in life, sullied by the touch of the Damned, this does not have
to be immediately before death. Sometimes, those fed by, or
fed from Kindred at some point in their lives die and come
in contact with Kindred Vitae. Sometimes, they awaken.

A sire must choose to commit the Embrace, and that
choice comes at the price of a Humanity dot. Posthumous
Embraces break that rule.

If a mortal has fed from a vampire in at any point in her
lifetime, she is a candidate for the posthumous Embrace
regardless of her cause of death. Within a week of her
death, before significant decomposition sets in, contact with
Kindred Vitae could mean she awakens as Kindred. The
donor rolls his Blood Potency. If the roll is successful, the
corpse rises in seven nights, minus one for every success on
the Blood Potency roll. This costs the donor a Humanity dot
only if he makes a deliberate choice to attempt an Embrace.
(The troupe should exercise some common sense and
avoid “accidental” Embraces achieved through ridiculous
contortions of events.)

Generally, Kindred deride and mock the posthumous
Embrace. Known posthumous sires are branded “grave
robbers,” and their childer are seen as dirty and incomplete.
Functionally, they’re identical to any other Kindred. Some
Mekhet favor the posthumous method for spiritual reasons;
they believe it helps the vampire transition into the Requiem
quicker.

Chapter Three: Laws of the Dead 93

Rules for Revenants While neither of these phenomena cause the vampire
direct Humanity loss like an Embrace, being responsible for
Unless noted below, revenants function a revenant’s creation is a breaking point for Kindred with
identically to Kindred. Humanity 2 or more.

Blood Potency: Consider a revenant’s Blood Anomalies
Potency 1, and it may not increase. Revenants and posthumous Embraces are only two exceptions
to the traditional Embrace. Anomalies happen. Two of the major
Vitae: Revenants can store a number of Vitae covenants tell stories of anomalous Embraces: Both Longinus
equal to five plus their Stamina. Each night upon and Dracula allegedly received the Embrace as a curse from the
waking, they lose all their stored Vitae, and awaken Abrahamic God. Nomads share stories of strange Kindred without
starved. Often, the loss of Vitae takes the form of traditional sires, from cultists who found proto-clans after morbid
sweating out their stolen blood as they sleep. blood rituals, to strange Ordo Dracul surgical experiments that
end in sireless vampires. For a time, it was widely rumored in the
Clan: Revenants have no clan, so they have no Lancea et Sanctum that sexual intimacy with a human would damn
clan banes. the unfortunate mortal to return from the grave.

Disciplines: Revenants may only learn Disciplines Feeding
as out-of-clan, and cannot learn clan-specific The blood is everything. It’s life. It’s food. It’s power. It’s
Disciplines without a teacher. They may never closeness. It stands to reason that feeding is an all-important
learn Devotions, blood sorceries, or Coils or Scales act for Kindred. Ask a dozen Kindred how they feed, you’ll get
of the Dragon. five dozen answers.

Humanity: A Revenant starts with Humanity 7. While most vampires learn numerous feeding practices from
The Embrace: Revenants can create neither their sires, every Kindred develops her own methods and tricks.
revenants nor Kindred. With different skill sets, social circles, and Disciplines at her
Contamination: Revenant blood cannot sustain disposal, her best meal ticket is the one she finds herself.
ghouls or establish blood bonds.
Diablerie: While they do not gain the normal
benefits of diablerie, Amaranth will uplift a
revenant into a vampire of the victim’s clan.
Blood Sympathy: Revenants have a +5 die
bonus to all blood sympathy rolls to their sires,
instead of +3. Often, city officials use revenants as
bloodhounds to find their illegitimate sires.

Spontaneous Embraces: Revenants The Assault, The Kiss
Sometimes, those contaminated by the Kindred bite or Vampires have two traditional avenues of feeding. They
Kindred blood die, but don’t stay dead. Victims of violent can feed aggressively, or subtly. Each has its advantages and
feedings and ghouls will sometimes rise as revenants shortly disadvantages. Normally, a vampire’s fangs retract, only looking
after their deaths. The possibility of revenants, like other barely sharper than normal canines. At will, a vampire can
mutations of the Embrace, is widely rumored but not widely unsheathe them to bite, and to feed.
known or understood.
When feeding violently, a vampire’s fangs act as 0L weapons
Revenants are not-quite-Kindred vampires. They often that use the Brawl Skill. That is to say, on a successful attack,
lead tragic and brief existences. However, any knowledgeable they cause lethal damage equal to their successes, even to
Kindred can uplift them to become full Kindred. Uplifting Kindred. As well, the attacker also takes one Vitae (which
a revenant requires that the surrogate sire feed the revenant causes an additional point of lethal damage to mortals). The
his Vitae, and invest a point of Humanity. At that point, the drawback is that a bite must be performed as a Damage move
revenant becomes Kindred, and of the surrogate sire’s clan.
The Feed Move
When a vampire exsanguinates a contaminated mortal, roll
the vampire’s Humanity + 2. If the roll succeeds, the death The vampire may use this move once she has
occurs as expected. If the roll fails, the corpse rises as a revenant bitten her opponent in a grapple, and bests her
at some unpredictable time during the following week. opponent in the grapple roll. She steals one Vitae
per success. Against mortals, this causes one point
When a ghoul dies, roll their regnant’s Blood Potency. If of lethal damage per Vitae taken. The number of
successful, the ghoul rises as a revenant after seven nights minus Vitae taken may not exceed the vampire’s Blood
the successes rolled. Potency dots.

Kindred aware of the possibility of revenants often destroy
the corpses of the dead in ways that prevent them from rising
as vampires. Some feed with needles and other accoutrements
to avoid contaminating their victims.

94 Vampire: the Requiem

as part of a grapple (see p. 177). A mortal bitten violently gains less satisfying. To gain a single point of Vitae, a vampire must
the Scarred Condition (see p. 305). While still grappling and consume as many pints of this blood as her Blood Potency times
after a violent bite, the vampire gains access to the Feed move. two. Technologically stored blood, for example in refrigerated
plasma bags, is similarly unpalatable to potent Kindred.
When feeding non-violently, the vampire’s fangs cause an
enticing, invigorating sensation that distracts the victim, to draw Kindred Vitae is a dangerous food. First off, Vitae is addicting
attention away from the reality of the feeding. Many Kindred (see Vitae Addiction, p. 99). As well, it causes the blood bond
use this method as part of a seduction. A mortal bitten subtly (see Blood Bonds, p. 90). However, it’s efficient. Every Vitae
gains the Swooning Condition (see p. 306). The bonuses and taken is a Vitae earned, and this causes no additional damage
penalties for Swooning apply to the vampire’s Discipline rolls. to the victim. Stored Kindred Vitae is effectively cold blood.
With a subtle bite, the vampire can take one Vitae per turn, and
may lick the wound afterwards, leaving no trace of her feeding. Animal blood is a challenging meal that provides only limited
sustenance for the youngest of Kindred. Size 0 animals provide
At Storyteller discretion, particularly dramatic feedings can no nourishment. Size 1 animals provide one point of Vitae. For
cause Persistent Conditions. For this reason, many vampire example, a large rat will provide a single point of Vitae. Size
hunters have the Scarred or Swooning Conditions. On the 2-3 animals provide two Vitae each. Size 4-5 animals provide
other hand, so do many devoted blood dolls. 3. Each point of Size above that adds one more Vitae available.

In reference to the effects of a bite, the word “mortal” applies Starting Vitae
to humans, ghouls, warlocks, and other things that are mostly In a perfect world, a vampire remains well-fed, and never
human. Vampires, werewolves, mummies, fairies, and other risks her hunger getting the best of her. At the start of most
things far removed from humanity are not normally subject to game sessions, and at the beginning of any scene where the
the Assault and the Kiss. The bite is pleasurable or unsettling; characters did not have established Vitae, the Storyteller should
just not mechanically so. call for a starting Vitae roll. As a suggestion, any time one or
more nights pass in the story where the characters could have
If the vampire knows she’s feeding from something not fed, that’s grounds for a starting Vitae roll.
human, and knows that it is otherwise immune to the benefits
of her bite, she may spend a point of Willpower to give them To roll for starting Vitae, roll a single die, looking at the number
the Scarred or Swooning Conditions as normal. Kindred are on the die rather than checking for successes. Add your Feeding
aware of this effect, and see its use as abhorrent and degrading. Grounds Merit. This is your starting Vitae. It cannot exceed
Kindred who rely on it with their own kind often end up the capacity noted by your character’s Blood Potency (see p. 90).
ostracized or worse.
Consider tracking Vitae not on the character sheet, but with
Blood Supplies tokens. Red poker chips, glass beads, or other tactile, visual
Vampires can find blood through numerous sources. Most representations work well. The act of handing tokens back and
commonly, blood comes from humans. They can also feed forth helps to conceptualize the flow of blood.
from stored blood, from animals, from other Kindred, and
rarely from other supernatural creatures. Note the Blood Feeding Scenes
Potency restrictions on what powerful Kindred can feed from Vampire: The Requiem characters will wander through their
(see p. 90). existences, feeding from countless vessels over the years. This
is the heart of the game. Clearly, we can’t portray every feeding
Vitae is not blood. At least, not directly. Blood flows through situation over the centuries. But every chapter should feature at
mortal veins; Vitae through Kindred. However, when Kindred least one feeding scene. Feeding scenes are much more abstract
“spend” Vitae, their bodies do not lose the fluid that animates than most rules, since every vampire feeds in different ways.
them; it simply becomes inert. Picture Kindred blood as paint.
Blood is the oil, the water, the vessel. You can’t paint with oil As a rule, feeding scenes tend toward those meals in a
or water. The Vitae is the pigment. It brings color, it makes the vampire’s Requiem that matter most. When things go as
paint vibrant. It’s only a small part of the mixture. You could intended, the vessels give context for the vampire’s existence.
remove the pigment and still have a pail of fluid, it just wouldn’t When things go wrong, they crash down (or inexorably fall like
be very useful on a canvas. dominos) into grand tragedies.

Human blood is best warm, from the living. Kindred can Since most feeding scenes will feature only one character, use
pull a number of Vitae from a mortal equal to the mortal’s these opportunities to put a spotlight on her. Let her shine. Let
unmodified Health dots. Every point of Vitae she takes causes her fall in the mud with style. If the scene has multiple speaking
one point of lethal damage. If she takes more Vitae than the Storyteller characters, don’t hesitate to pass their portrayal to
human has dots of Stamina, he suffers the Drained Condition the other players, so they can take ownership of the moment.
(see p. 303). Once a vampire attains her sixth dot of Blood To foster this participation, offer a Willpower point to players
Potency, she no longer finds human blood nourishing. willing to adopt a bit part.

Cold blood from a corpse or kept outside the body for We offer two options; with dice and without dice.
more than a few minutes (but no more than a night) is far

Chapter Three: Laws of the Dead 95

With Dice Example Dramatic Failures
Use the following system to resolve feeding scenes when you
want to roll dice and engage character traits. Note that not all these examples will work for
every character, or every feeding scene.
Dice Pool: As determined by the action. For example,
seduction may require Manipulation + Persuasion, and The Witness: One of the vampire’s Touchstones
cornering and jumping someone in an alley might be Strength + stumbles on the scene and witnesses everything.
Streetwise. Use the Attribute + Skill combination to encompass
the whole, intended action into a single roll. By spending a point The Inquisitive: Most meet the Kiss with rapture
of Vitae, you may add an appropriate Discipline rating to your and fascination. This vessel is curious, and wants
roll. If you choose to do this, consider any failures dramatic to know more.
failures, and do not take the Beat for it.
The Hunter: A hunter led the vampire into a trap.
Action: Instant, roll represents one hour’s efforts The Relatives: A mysterious vampire with a blood
tie enters the scene.
Roll Results The Rival: The vessel just happens to be a member
of a rival’s herd.
Dramatic Failure: Something happens beyond the realm of The Wrong Turn: The hunt went down the wrong
expectation. Maybe the vessel wasn’t quite human. Maybe another alley, and the vampire feeds in another’s turf.
lick calls your meal his herd. Maybe she was out hunting for The Resistant: The vessel is immune to the Kiss,
vampires. Maybe the vampire’s Touchstone watched the whole for reasons unknown.
thing by accident. Look to the sidebar for examples of dramatic The Affliction: The vessel has one of the rare
failures while feeding. This doesn’t necessarily prohibit feeding, diseases that can plague the dead.
but the vampire must deal with the inauspicious scene at hand. The Anemic: The vessel dies unexpectedly after
only a shallow feeding.
Failure: The stars just don’t align as intended. Crowds appear The Nemesis: The vessel is merely a shell,
in all the wrong places. Conversation partners have wingmen possessed by the Strix.
ready to drag them away from private trysts. The hour is a wash.
That is, of course, unless you wish to take a Beat and turn that Success: Things go as intended. Your character finds a suitable
failure into a dramatic failure.… vessel, and may feed freely, with relative safety. Remember to
pay attention to the effects of feeding on the vessel.
Suggested Feeding Modifiers
Exceptional Success: Things go phenomenally well. During
Situation Modifier the scene, the Storyteller must give at least three important,
identifying features or personality traits about the vessel. Once,
Feeding Grounds Merit +1 to +5 at an appropriate time in a later scene, you may request the
vessel’s involvement. If you do so, take a Beat. This involvement
Hunting multiple vessels simultaneously −2 each may be abstract: for example, if they’re dead, or if they gave a
detailed description to the police.
Additional hours of hunting in a night +2 (cumulative)
Without Dice
Only hunting for one half hour −3 This system fosters a more intimate, dramatic, and organic
experience with feeding scenes. You don’t touch the dice until
Dressed wrong for the hunt −2 after the scene’s completely over. The only game traits you need
to reference are your character’s Mask and Dirge.
Hunting repeat prey +1
In this system, everyone at the table can participate by
Hunting animal blood (urban) +1 bringing in (initially) nameless mortal characters. However, the
spotlight player (playing the feeding Kindred) and the Storyteller
Hunting animal blood (rural) +3 can interject in these events. Both the spotlight player and
the Storyteller can offer a Beat to any player that delivered an
Hunting in the Rack +2 excellent experience with a mortal bit character during a feeding
scene. This happens after the scene.
Poaching −2
To start out, the spotlight player describes the scenario. He
Hunting during a curfew −3 describes where his character is, what kind of person he’s looking
for, and how he approaches. That ends his initial participation.
Hunting during a crime spree −3
Next, the Storyteller picks up and brings a degree of action
Hunting a very specific vessel (for −2 to −5 to the situation. Does the mark notice? Is there an unexpected
example, by hair color, by profession,
or by age)

96 Vampire: the Requiem

bit of attention on the side? Be descriptive. Be evocative. Focus this one in a football jersey, puts his hand on Mr. Trust Fund’s
on symbols and aesthetic here, to emphasize the ambience. shoulder and says, ‘You gonna let them blow you off like that?’
However, this should focus on a single piece of drama. Trust Fund shakes his head and puffs his chest confrontationally.”

From there, go back and forth. Every exchange should be a Jeff: “Trust Fund puts a hand on the girl and…”
single action, a single exchange. Unlike a normal, rolled action,
the narrator can dictate other characters’ responses. Joe: (Puts his hand up) “I’m stepping in here. So he puts his
hand on the girl? Well, Joanna’s Dirge is that of the Competitor.
At any time, other players may raise their hands. At the end She’s not going to let some two-bit frat boy touch her meal.
of an action, the narrating player may allow the player to step She narrows her eyes, and grabs the guy’s wrist. Tight. Like,
in with a bit character to influence the scene. Similarly, it’s one his mother’s going to tell him to get that checked out kind of
action, then back to the spotlight player or Storyteller. tight. She says, ‘You’re going to let us blow you off like that.’
He winces, nods, and says, ‘Yes, ma’am.’”
During the scene, the spotlight player can invoke fiat to
interject at any time and have his character contradict the Jeff: “Alright.” (Jeff marks a tick) “The two of you start your
current action. To do this, he must invoke his character’s Mask way out. She doesn’t know what’s going on. She’s still confused,
or Dirge, literally using one of them in the description of the but follows along beside you. She says, ‘What did you do? He
interjection. His character must be defending one or the other. was crying! He was just some jerk, you didn’t need to hurt him!’
However, this gives the spotlight player full narrative control She stops to confront you just outside the door.”
for that moment. The Storyteller marks a tick each time the
spotlight player does this. Joe: “Joanna looks at the girl, and says, ‘He was a cretin. He’d
have hurt you if it went any further. Let’s get out of here, and we
Alternatively, the spotlight player can interject at any time by can talk all about it. I don’t want his gorilla friend getting any
sending his character into a frenzy. This does not add a tick. bright ideas to follow us out.’ Joanna tugs her toward the car.”

Keep going until the scene comes to a logical close. At the Jeff: “The girl does not seem impressed. She snaps her arm
closing, the Storyteller counts the number of accumulated ticks. away and turns on her heel…”
Subtract those from six. The player rolls for detachment as if the
hunt were a breaking point at that Humanity level. Add a tick Joe: (Puts his hand up) “Interfering. So, Joanna’s Mask is
for anything else that would constitute a detachment. Normal Nurturer. She goes from a stern expression to a total caring,
modifiers apply to the detachment roll.. compassionate façade in seconds. She looks hurt and put upon
by the reaction. Joanna uses Lay Open the Mind to dig into the
Example of Play girl’s thoughts about her ex, Mark, who hurt her before. ‘You do
Joe, Rustyn, and Jeff are playing a game of Vampire: know I was just trying to protect you, right? I just didn’t want
The Requiem. Jeff is the Storyteller, Joe’s playing Joanna to see you hurt again.’ She tugs on the girl’s heartstrings and
Sangiovanni, Rustyn is playing Robyn. Jeff decides that during guilt trips her a little.”
this chapter, they’ll showcase a hunting scene for Joanna.
Jeff: “She nods and forces a smile.” (Jeff marks a tick) “She
Joe: “Joanna hits up campus. She’s going to the Verge, that falls back in line beside Joanna, and starts the walk back to
little hipster bar off the main drag. She’s rocking the classic black the car. ‘And I’m Emily. Not Angie.’ She grins and gets into
cocktail dress. Totally over-dressed for this place. But she dumbs the passenger seat.”
it down a bit with a pink feather boa she picked up at the thrift
shop. That song’s still on the radio, so thrift shops are in style. Joe: “I think we can call a close there? Joanna will spend the
She’s looking for a student who is frustrated and fed up with the next few hours with her, but she’ll be gone before Emily wakes.
guys buying her drinks and trying their cheesy-assed lines on her.” She’ll get her number though, of course.”

Jeff: “There she is. She’s sitting with her elbow on the bar, Jeff: “Yeah, that’s fine. I’ve got two ticks here, so you’re going
rolling her eyes at a trust fund kid. He’s in expensive jeans, to have to check for detachment at Humanity 4. What’s Joanna’s
weathered to make them look old and worn. He says, ‘I’m just Humanity?”
saying, you’re not doing anything. I’m not doing anything.
Maybe we could do something, somewhere else. I’ve got a Joe: “Five, so I have to check for detachment. A Humanity
beachside view.’ She winces and takes a deep breath. He shifts 4 breaking point is two dice. But Joanna has an attached
to corner her against the bar.” Touchstone, so she gets +2.”

Joe: “Great. Joanna slips in and under his arm. She puts her Jeff: “Yeah. I don’t think there are any other modifiers. So
arm around the girl’s waist, and says, ‘Hey Angie. Is this guy roll.”
bothering you?’ Then she looks to him, ‘Are you bothering
my girl?’” She uses Lay Open the Mind and tells the girl, ‘play Joe: (Joe rolls, and gets two successes) “Two successes. So
along.’ She nods, and gets up from the stool.” Joanna doesn’t lose Humanity. But she gets a Condition. Would
Wanton make sense?”
Rustyn: (Raises her hand, Joe passes to her) “So, as Joanna
and the girl stand to leave, the guy doesn’t know what to do. He Jeff: “Yeah. I could see Competitive, too. Since you shut
stands there looking confused for a second. Then, a second guy, down that frat boy.”

Joe: “You’re right. I think I’ll take Wanton, though. Speaking
of the frat boy, Rustyn should get a Beat for playing the gorilla.”

Jeff: “Agreed.”

Chapter Three: Laws of the Dead 97

Daysleep and Waking Every bloodline is somehow different from its parent clan
Once the sun rises, the vampire’s soul drags her toward by way of an additional bane. Often, these banes are more
slumber. This isn’t a certain thing, but difficult to resist. pronounced and restrictive than their clan counterparts.
Unless she’s at risk of facing the sun, she sleeps. To resist For example, one Mekhet ancient bloodline takes aggravated
sleep, make a Stamina + Resolve roll. If successful, the damage from sunlight regardless of the member’s Humanity,
vampire remains alert and active, but she gains the Lethargic and one group of Gangrel can only feed from Kindred, from
Condition (see p. 305). With an exceptional success, she the moment its members adopt the lineage.
does not gain the Condition.
Properties of the Blood
Any time Kindred sleep, they stay asleep. Waking is difficult There’s blood, and there’s Blood. Kindred Vitae is not human
at best. Only direct threats like fire, sunlight, or a collapsing blood, and it carries with it a series of potent and important
building will wake a vampire. The act of waking is hard, fast, properties in addition to fueling eternal life and Disciplines.
and disconcerting. The blood snaps her to brief consciousness,
and allows her to take immediate actions to defend herself. About Vitae
The dead heart shoves Vitae through the body once, hard. Vitae is not blood; at least, not directly. Kindred create Vitae
as a byproduct of processing the blood they absorb. There’s
When something disturbs the vampire’s slumber or puts no digestion; the blood seeps through the gullet and washes
her at risk, make a Humanity roll. Success allows her to through decaying tissues. Vitae is the perverse fuel that exists
remain awake for a number of turns equal to her Humanity. within the Kindred’s blood. When Kindred use their Vitae,
Failure means she remains asleep. Once those turns are over, they do not normally lose blood. The Beast is too selfish to
she falls back to sleep without an additional Humanity roll. let go of that fluid. However, certain Disciplines, the act of
Once she’s exceeded 5 + her Blood Potency successes during creating a blood bond, and the Embrace require the vampire
her waking turns, she can remain awake indefinitely, as if to contaminate the world around her with her Vitae. She does
she never went to sleep in the first place. this through blood.

Any time a vampire wakes from slumber, she immediately Vampires do not naturally bleed when cut. The Vitae is
expends a point of Vitae. Normal waking happens shortly possessive; it pulls the blood back to the body in the way a
after the sun goes down. Waking is like a fatal heart attack drop of mercury absorbs back into a pool. When exhibiting
in reverse; the body hurts and does not work. The heart the blush of life (see p. 90), vampires will bleed normally, but
slowly begins pulsing, and the body slowly fights back to life. still not lose Vitae. Some heinous injuries can cause limited
The limbs begin paralyzed, but then tingle and grow flush. Vitae loss. For example, if the vampire loses a chunk of flesh
or a limb, the blood will remain with the lost part, and pour
Bloodlines out as the tissue and bone decays. Only in these terrible cases
While all Kindred owe lineage to one of the five clan trees, would blood loss equate with Vitae loss.
sometimes the blood twists and warps the branches into something
altogether different. These bloodlines shift and focus the Kindred Blood bearing Vitae is slightly darker, and has an almost
condition toward specific, often familial abnormalities. syrupy quality. It has all the normal metallic smells blood
should, but also has a subtle, sweet smell, like a dessert wine.
Kindred may join bloodlines as allowed by their Blood
Potency dots. A character may join her sire’s bloodline at Blood Blood Sympathy
Potency 1. At Blood Potency 2, a vampire with which she shares Blood calls to blood. Relatives by blood share a certain
a blood tie (see p. 98) may act as Avus. At Blood Potency 4, any amount of mystical sympathy; they can feel one another at
vampire of her clan may act as an Avus. An Avus is a sort of their most important moments. They sometimes feel strong
mentor. Acting as an Avus into a bloodline requires feeding the sensations and emotions from their relatives, including
prospect at least one point of Vitae. This carries all normal risk frenzies, the pain of violent torpor, and the shame of crushing
of addiction and blood bonds. At Blood Potency 6, vampires defeat. This sensation is rarely clear; it comes in the form
may create their own, unique bloodlines. This is to say, all of cryptic symbols, daymares, and hallucinations. Only the
bloodlines were founded by Kindred of Blood Potency 6 or strongest ties — such as those between sire and childe — result
greater. A character may only be part of one bloodline, and in clear messages.
cannot leave a bloodline once joined.
The various effects depend on how many steps removed the
Many times, these bloodlines possess unique Disciplines, two characters are.
exclusive Devotions, or strange sorceries. All bloodlines have
four Disciplines considered in-clan. These do not always align Once Removed: This step is for sires and their childer
with their parent clan Disciplines. A given bloodline may have exclusively. Sires and childer enjoy a +3 on all sympathy-based
one unique Discipline; and nobody outside the bloodline can
learn their gift, even through diablerie.

98 Vampire: the Requiem

rolls. This level of sympathy has no range limits; sires and Vitae Addiction
childer can feel each other from across the world. Vitae is life. Life tastes very, very good. In fact, it tastes so
good, it’s highly addictive to both mortal and Kindred alike.
Twice Removed: This step is for siblings, grandchilder, and Vitae’s addictive quality is one of the strongest tools Kindred can
grandsires. Twice-removed Kindred receive a +2 die bonus on bring to bear. Even ignoring the blood bond (see p. 90), Vitae
all sympathy-based rolls. Sympathy affects any relative on the is a remarkable bargaining chip. Just as in the mortal world,
same continent. addiction’s a terrible thing when leveraged against a person.

Thrice Removed: This step is for cousins, a sire’s siblings, Vitae addiction feels very similar to addiction to a strong drug.
and great grandsires and great grandchilder. Thrice-removed An addict does not have to see her vice to want it; she always
Kindred receive a +1 die bonus on all sympathy-based rolls. wants it. It sits in the back of her mind, festering. An addict
Sympathy affects any relative in the same city. could just let her wound heal, but instead, she pokes at it, she
tongues it, she just can’t let go. At any given time, no matter
Four Times Removed: This final step is for all clanmates. what she’s doing, she is also thinking, “I could be getting my
They receive no modifiers for sympathy rolls. Sympathy affects score instead of this.” Some blood addicts resort to attacking
any clanmate within a mile. other Kindred, or even committing Amaranth to get a fix.
Many seek out contaminated blood when they casually hunt,
Sympathy comes into effect automatically any time a vampire’s using hard drugs as a tepid replacement for their true needs.
relative enters torpor or suffers Final Death. The feeling washes
over the vampire and she senses her relative’s state in vague, Any time a character drinks Kindred Vitae, he must roll
often symbolic terms. As well, characters can initiate sympathy to Resolve + Composure, with a –1 die penalty for each point
communicate their states of being to their relatives once or twice consumed. If he fails, he gains the Persistent Addicted
removed. To do so, they must spend a Willpower point and make Condition (see p. 301). Any time he’s faced with further
a Blood Potency roll. Each success allows them to contact a single opportunities to drink Vitae, he must indulge, succeed in a
relative; the relative must still make the roll to detect sympathy. Resolve + Composure roll, or gain the Deprived Condition. If
a character tempts him with Vitae, she may make a Contested
Any particularly powerful emotion can trigger sympathy, at roll (usually Manipulation + Persuasion or something similar)
Storyteller discretion. This is less a foolproof detective tool, and against his Resolve + Composure.
a more dramatic device. Any time a relative suffers a horrible
fate, sympathy may cause frenzies. Elders and Addiction
Once Kindred reach a certain degree of power, blood
Detecting Sympathy addiction no longer threatens them. If a vampire can only
When prompted, a character may roll to detect blood garner sustenance from Kindred (at six dots or more of Blood
sympathy. She may also spend a point of Willpower to force Potency), she is immune to blood addiction. This doesn’t render
sympathy and detect a specific relative, assuming they’re within her immune to blood bonds, however.
the range allotted by their tie. Some Kindred use sympathy to
track their family members. Blood Bonds
While addictive, Vitae carries a far more sinister effect for those
Dice Pool: Wits + Blood Potency + Blood Sympathy who drink it: the blood bond. A blood bond, also called a Vinculum,
is a strand of powerful, one-sided emotion borne of Vitae. Someone
Action: Instant subject to a blood bond finds himself drawn to, wanting, needing,
devoted to, and even loving the one from whom he’s fed.
Dramatic Failure: Rolls to detect Sympathy cannot
dramatically fail. While many Kindred expose humans to the blood bond, often as
part of creating ghouls, other Kindred are just as vulnerable to the
Failure: The sympathetic tie fails. blood’s draw. Many sires bind their childer. Many Princes impose
bonds on criminals. Every city, every covenant, and indeed every
Success: The character connects with the relative. She gets a vampire views the bond differently. Some abhor it. Some find it a
vague impression of the character’s mental state, and his general regrettable inevitability. Some revel in it. Most fear it. Some Kindred
direction. If the relative enters torpor or Final Death, his relative willingly succumb to the bond with a trusted ally, because a given
knows one of those two things has happened (but not which). Kindred may only be enthralled to a single vampire. This serves as
a form of perverse protection against a less desirable bond. Some
Exceptional Success: The character connects clearly. She mutually blood bond each other, to heighten feelings of intimacy.
understands her relative’s mental state, his direction from her,
and his rough distance from her. She knows if he’s reached A bound character is called the thrall, the character he’s
torpor or Final Death. In addition, he send a message of a single, bound to is his regnant.
short sentence that she hears through the blood tie.

Discipline Sympathy
As well as feeling the sensations of their relatives, vampires
are more capable of using their Disciplines on those with whom
they share blood ties. If a vampire uses a Discipline on a relative,
add the blood sympathy bonus to the roll. Rolls made to enact
Crúac sorcery use double this modifier.

Chapter Three: Laws of the Dead 99